Couples of the digiworld, Unite!
by avearia
Summary: unrelated oneshots, with a different pairing every chapter. Ch4: Valentine's day is here, and Izzy's fretting over whether to give Sora, his crush, a Valentine. Little does he know that Sora may have the exact same problem...
1. Can I? Taiora

**Couples of the digiworld, unite!**

**If you are here because of the summary/couple brodcasted on the story summary, please proceed straight to the very last chapter. Please note; **

**-each story is a oneshot **

**-each chapter has the couple in it (Mimato, Takari, Taiora, ect.) placed next to it on the chapter title **

**-each chapter has its own summary in it. **

I'm sorry, I know this is long, but please read it before you start the story. Thanx.

YAY! So, have any of you ever noticed how many couples there are in digimon? Yes, it's because of the amount of main characters, but you normally wouldn't be able to find so much… wow. In this fanficiton, you will find a series of several, **_separate_**, stories, each containing a different couple pairing. Yes, you heard correctly—Mimato, Taiora, Jyoumi, Koumi, Takari, Kensuke, Sorato, Yakari, Taito… yes, For once I will be doing a Taito… (Cringe), Dakari (another cringe…) Sora x Izzy (is there a word for that?) and many more.

If you have a certain preference, you can suggest which kind of pairing you want for the next chapter. I'll do my best to hit them all, but I might get bored and not write some, like Mimi and Davis together. Odd… anyway, if you review and give me your preferences, I'll try to make one for you, but don't get discouraged if I don't do it right in the next chapter. :P I've got _some_ sort of order in my head, you know.

I might be doing one pairing twice or however I see fit because of how frequently it's requested in the reviews (by different people, not the same person over and over again.) Also, now that I'm going to write things like this… Well, I can't exactly say I've read a whole lot of good Dakari's or Taito's, and if you want, you can tell me where I can find something good that'll give me some sort of insight of that kind of relationship. Just make sure they're good and that they're short. (And if you're lucky, I might do some from the fourth season as well…)

One thing I would like to say before I start is that FLAMERS WILL BE DELETED. Since this is a fanfiction that revolves around couples, I will ask for this one time only that the flamers stay away. I mean, can you imagine what the reviews would look like? "God, you're perverted! Joe is too old for her!" or "Tai and MIMI? How could you _do _that?" or "Fuck all persons who love Yakari!" it would get really old really quick. So, if you absolutely _must_ say something like that, please don't put it in your reviews… email me. I'll take out any criticism you give and might even reply. However, if you give me cussing for half an hour's worth of text, I'm not gonna read it, and if I answer your email, and you send me multiple emails that don't even talk back to what I had to say, then I'll have to do something about it… remember that if you email me I get your address as well.

Thank you for reading this long, uninformative bunch of boring paragraphs. Now, on with the show! … I just realized how ridiculously long my entire story is. Oh well.

**Summary for 'Can I?':** Tai takes Sora out for a day in the sunshine. But the goggle-headed boy has more in mind than just _one_ day with her. Question is, can he gather up the courage to ask Sora to be with him always?

* * *

_Note:_ I happen not to own digimon at this time. But I shall, oh, I shall... (Gets whacked on the head) OWCH! What was that for? I just mean that I want to make a corporal take over! (gets hit again)

* * *

**Can I?**

"Come on Sora!"

Taichi Kamiya was dragging Sora Takenouchi down the sidewalk of a less-than-crowded neighboring city at seven in the morning. He was bouncing up and down, pulling at the half asleep girl by the wrist. Sora was busy rubbing her eyes and trying to keep up with her friend so that he didn't pull her over in his excitement. "Why are we here again?" she asked unenthusiastically. "I'd rather be in bed for a while. I wasn't even aware that train stations were open at six in the morning…"

"Sora, you didn't know that six in the morning even existed on Saturdays. Give me a break here! There's no way that you can be that tired. We wake up at six every day!"

"Every day but Saturday!" she protested.

He just ignored this and kept walking. Pretty soon he found a café, which he led Sora into. He pulled her up to a table and ordered them two hot chocolates and Sora a mountain dew. Handing it to her, he began to sip his drink. She dully took up the Mountain Dew and drank it dully.

In a few minutes she was wide awake and looked as though she would bounce off the ceiling if not for the law of gravity. "Ah, yes. Caffeine. The _true _fountain of youth. So, are you ready?" Tai asked sarcastically.

"Ready for what?" Sora asked, trying to slow down a touch. "I'm ready for anything. Ready for what?"

"Broken record…" Tai joked.

"Broken broken broken broken. I'm a broken record. Yay!"

Tai rolled his eyes. "Ok, maybe you could've done without the extra hot chocolate. I just didn't think you'd go this crazy." He teased.

"At least it's not you…" she teased back. "If you'd had my soda then you'd've probably broken the table. Or the chair. Or the window of someone's shop. Or- oh well. It's just that you are so clumsy when you're hyperactive." She laughed. "Sometimes…"

"Oh, hush. You're no better."

"So where-where-where are we going? Where? Where?" Sora jumped up and down on her heels.

Tai rolled his eyes and smiled.

"To the forest."

This made Sora stop, but only for a second. She soon ran quickly after him to catch up. "The forest?"

* * *

"Well, here we are!" Tai announced triumphantly. They were standing in a clearing that was rather large. Trees made a rough circle around the area that they stood on. In the distance Sora could hear a faint _sssshhhhhhhhhsssssshhhhssss…_ of what she imagined must have been dry leaves blowing in the wind.

"Have… we been here before?" Sora asked suspiciously.

Tai smiled. "What, don't you trust me?"

"No." she replied flatly.

"Well, you shouldn't, I suppose. But anyway…" he put a hand in his pocket. "Don't you remember this place?" He asked in an uncaring voice, letting his eyes sweep the trees and open area surrounding them.

Sora looked around as well. "Field trip?" she asked. Tai shook his head. "Stargazing?" He shook it again. "A time when we hosted a party? A police chase? A hunting crew? No?" she sat back on her heels and thought for a moment. Finally she snapped her fingers. "The first place aliens have been known to land." Tai started laughing.

"What?" she asked, smiling at her own joke.

"You really don't know?" he smirked.

She shook her head.

"You Really, really don't know?"

She shook her head more violently.

"You really don't, truly don't, absolutely don't…" Sora hit him in the head.

"Would you just tell me already… wait…" She had come to a sudden realization. "This is… really, truly, absolutely…" her eyes flashed. "Not…"

Tai Laughed out loud. "YES!" he exclaimed. "You _do_ remember!"

* * *

_(Flashback)_

"_Dear, are you sure you don't want to go back to that town?" Sora's mother, Terra, asked. "I'm sure that we could… find a place to stay. It's pretty dark out…" _

"_Yeah!" Tai's mother, Yuko, came up beside Terra, talking to her husband, Susumu. "Let's go back and stay at that lovely hotel back there! It would be a lot better than wandering around here! I wanna go back!" she demanded._

"_Ah, come on. We're almost there!"_

"_WHERE are we going, exactly?" Tai's mother asked suspiciously. _

_Sora's father, Hiroki, just laughed. "The falls! Or have you forgotten?" _

_His wife blushed. "Y-yes! Of course I knew that, but this isn't right! We should go back!" she stammered. "I-it's just not… the right way! I'm sure of it!" Her husband looked at her skeptically, to which she stood tall and hit her chest. "Woman's intuition! Not the right way! … besides, don't you remember how bad your sense of direction is?"_

"_No." the men replied flatly. _

_Sora and Tai walked with each other, far to the right of the adults. "What're they doing, you think?" She asked her friend. "Aren't they supposed to be relaxing? This** is** vacation!" she muttered. _

"_They're just bickering. Mum and dad do it all the time!" Tai said happily, skipping along. _

"_Over what?"_

"_Oh, dinner, lunch, breakfast…" he picked up a twig and poked at a giant caterpillar on a tree. "Food, Kari, school, taxers… lossa things." He concluded. "But they always laugh afterwards. I think they just don't make sense to each other. Dad remembers some things when mommy doesn't, and mom remembers some things when daddy doesn't. Like how bad daddy is at following instructions, for example." _

"_Dad's never here to argue. I think Mom's sick of him." Sora whispered in Tai's ear. "Are we going the right way?"_

"_No." Tai answered._

"_How can you tell?"_

_Tai smirked and stood strait, imitating his mother. "Men's intuition, dahling. Men's in-two-it's-on." He pronounced, making Sora laugh. Then to be serious, he became calm. "Listen. Close your eyes."_

_Sora did as he asked. She could hear something in the distance. Something that sounded like… like… _

_It was a gentle sound. Sort of like dry leaves being raked or… beans falling out of a sack and onto the ground. She listened to the calm sssshhhhhhhhhsssssshhhhssss of the sound that carried in the wind. _

"_You hear it?" he asked. Sora nodded. "We're supposed to go that way."_

_Sora thought about this concept for a moment. "Well, maybe we should, then." _

"_But I don't want to get in their way…" Tai said, eyeing his annoyed mother. _

"_We don't have to." Sora smirked. "See, here's what we do…" she whispered in his ear._

"_You sure?" Tai asked, uncertain. Then he answered himself. "Yeah. Let's do that. It's a good idea… just hope they don't get too mad." He looked at his parents. _

"_They won't." Sora said confidently, walking on._

_Finally they came to a clearing. Hiroki and Susumu both looked up. Tai's father snatched the map. "Uh, ok, let's see here." He scanned the map. "Left, right, left, then north…" _

"_Are we here yet?" Yuko came up behind him, and _

"_Uh, yes!" Hiroki exclaimed, then looked around, blushing. He massaged his neck, as if he had a cramp. _

_The two older women stared at their husbands, lost for words. It was Yuko who lost it first. "This…" she said, in a dangerous tone. "Is Really, Truly, Absolutely…" her eyes flashed and she picked up a long stick, chasing her husband, Susumu. "NOT THE FALLS!" _

"_But it could be!" Susumu insisted. "They could've filled it in or something! They just forgot to rename it… now it doesn't have a correct name anymore! AAHHH!" He ran from his wife, who was still brandishing the stick behind him. _

"_I'll make it right! We'll make sure you **fall!**" she said, running after him like a madwoman._

"_Please, dear, not in front of the childre-… eh? Where'd they go?" _

_This made the parents look around. "W-where…" Hiroki looked around. "Sora! This can't be good." He muttered._

"_They must've gotten lost. Or something." Susumu commented._

"_Like US?" Yuko glared at her husband, who flinched. "How will we find them if we don't know where the hell they are? Or where the hell WE are?" she demanded._

"_Easy. Just… retrace our steps?" Hiroki exchanged glances with his wife. "So-ora!" they called out at the same time, starting back the way they'd come. _

_Meanwhile, Sora and Tai walked out of the trees. Before them lay a huge stream and a gigantic hill. The stream fell off the side, forming a waterfall. "You were right, Tai! This is the falls!" Sora giggled. _

"_Too bad we had to ditch our parents to find it." Tai sighed. _

"_Just don't worry about it. They won't notice we're gone before our moms take over and find the falls, which is where we are!" she exclaimed back. "Let's go down into the water! There's a cool rock I wanna see." She started walking towards the rocks that were still dry, and when she reached them, she climbed down. _

_Tai followed suit. "I dunno, Sora. Once Kari got lost. They were looking everywhere for her. They even called the police!" Tai told her. "We're gonna be hunted like criminals by the police!" he sounded worried, and panicked. _

"_But police are nice peoples." Sora commented. Suddenly something caught her eye. "Oh tai, look!" _

_A white fish was in a puddle before her. It was a tiny puddle; the water barely trickled in and out of it. The fish swam in circles, which was amazing considering the fact that there was only three inches for it to move. "Oh, it's stuck! Why is it white, do you suppose?" she bent down to get a better look._

"_Ok, you try to get it first." Tai knelt beside her._

"_Get it first? What for?"_

"_Don't you think it's lonely in there? There aren't any other fish. And it's gonna grow more. Don't want it to be stuck now, do we?" Sora shook her head._

"_But…"_

"_I could go first…" _

_Sora looked up. "Yes!" she exclaimed. Tai reached down to try and grab the fish. It slipped out of his hands, splashed him, and dove back into the water. "Oops." Sora commented. "My turn? Neeeh…" she looked at it, worried. Finally she reached down and tried to pull it out. She got a hand around it, and nearly managed to pull it out of the water when it splashed her and dove back in. _

_The fight with the fish lasted four minutes, when finally Tai grabbed a rock and flipped it out of the hole. "There we go." Tai looked at Sora. "Ok. We're filthy." _

_Sora just laughed. "Well, at least we got the poor fishy out. I don't think I'll ever forget this, Tai." She thought for a moment, then splashed him with a huge handful of water. _

"_Wha-? Hey!" Tai splashed her back. They laughed and continued their water fight. _

"_I win!" Sora cried out, when Tai finally fell into the slowly churning water. _

"_Yeah, yeah." Tai looked at her for a moment, then tripped her. She got soaked, head to toe. "Now it's a tie." _

_(End flashback)_

"You realize that I won." She laughed. While she'd been remembering, she'd followed Tai back to the waterfall where they'd had the water war.

"You realize that my parents grounded me for two months after that little excursion." Tai remarked back. "And no, it was a tie. We were both soaking wet." He looked down into the river.

Sora looked at him curiously. Finally she kicked him in. "Ok. Now I've won."

* * *

Tai was drying off. They were lying in the sun, some ways away from the river. There were no trees; they'd been left behind. Now they sat in the sunlight, long grasses surrounding them in the form of plains and gigantic hills. Sora and Tai were playing tic-tac-toe on a board that was scribbled in the dirt. She put down a giant 'O' and crossed out an entire side. "Ok, ok. You win." Tai muttered. "But I'm pretty dried off now. What do you wanna do?" he asked, glaring at her out of the corner of his eye.

"We could… ah…"

"I've got an idea!" Tai exclaimed, rubbing his palms together evilly and standing. "Let's have a race! Last one down to the bottom of this hill… uh… has to…" he thought a moment.

"You can't be serious! I'm not running down there!" She eyed the long way down. "What if I trip? It'll be all your fault. No way!"

Tai smirked. "Come on. The grass is really soft. If you fall, you just roll!" he tugged at her arm. "C'mon!"

"Ah, no… no Tai! Wait a sec… whoa, whoa, whoa!" she leaned back trying to pull away, and only succeeded in falling backwards down the hill. On the plus side, Tai fell with her. "OH MAN TAI! IF WE DON'T DIE ON THE WAY DOWN, I'LL KILL YOU! WAH!" she exclaimed, her voice echoing off into the distance. They rolled a while, finally coming to a stop at the bottom.

Sora shifted her stance. She lay on her back, looking at where the heck Tai might be. She heard him grunt. "Good grief. That felt like it took hours! That was weird… I'm stuck on my stomach."

"Lookit the pretty flower." Sora said, dazedly. There was a giant blue flower hovering in front of her face. "Tai, lookit the pretty flower." She plucked it from the ground. It had a rather large stem. She took the end, snapped off the roots, and tied it near the top of the flower. Then she put it on Tai's head. "Lookit your pretty crown." She smirked.

Tai was in an awkward position. "Ah, ok… sure, Sora the random." He mumbled.

"Don't look at me, it was your idea, Tai the awkward." She called back to him. "Sorry. Tai the clumsy works much better." She snickered.

"Yeah, yeah." He righted himself. Then he laughed. "Good grief! That was hilarious!" he laughed, and Sora began to laugh too. Tai threw himself back into the long grass, where it hid him from view. Sora did the same. There was silence for a moment.

"Hey Tai?" Sora asked.

"Yeah?"

"You remember how the clouds looked in the digital world?" she asked calmly.

Sora could almost hear Tai's eyes snap open to look at the clouds. "Yeah. Why?" there was a moment of silence again. "You miss her?"

"Who?"

"Biyomon."

Sora blushed. "Well, yeah."

She saw Tai's brown hair through spaces in the grass. He looked in her direction. "I miss Agumon too. I wonder how he's doing? I mean, it's a nice place and all, but they always wanna fight." He sighed. "But I'm glad I met him."

"I'm glad I met Biyomon too. I have lots of memories about the digital world that are good, too. Not just the fighting." She smiled at the sky.

"Oh, Sora!" Tai exclaimed, sitting up and looking at her with exited eyes. "Remember the day **we** met?"

"Oh my _god_…" Sora laughed, the long grass around her hissing as she shifted in her spot. "Yeah, I do! It was on the first day of pre-school…"

_Flashback_

'_But mommy!' a mini Sora cried. 'I can't stay here! Take me with you!' the little girl clung to an older woman's leg. 'You can't leave me! NOOOOO!'_

_Sora's mother reached down and pried her daughter's hands loose from her leg. She held her frail hands together in front of her gently. 'Now listen, honey. This is a nice place, ok?' she brushed away a tear that fell from the little girl's eye. 'I won't be gone forever. Just for a bit. And then I'll pick you up after you're done! Isn't that nice? You can meet new kids here, just your age.' _

_The little girl rubbed her eyes. 'But there's that kid who lives near us in our apartment. I can meet him! I don't gotta go to school!' _

'_Don't worry. I'm sure that you'll like it here. Just give it a chance, ok? If you don't like it… then I won't make you come tomorrow.' Her mother frowned at her own decision, but then smiled at her daughter. 'Ok? Promise me you'll try. Try to like it here.' She urged her daughter through the door. _

'_I… Ok.' The child said, giving up. She walked into the room and sat down in a small chair by the door. Her mother said something to another lady, then blew Sora a kiss and left._

_Sora sat in the chair she had chosen and pouted. 'I'm not gonna like it here, 'cuz I don't. I wanna be with mommy!' she muttered to herself. People her age gathered in the classroom one by one, all looking as sad as she was. Pretty soon nearly all the chairs were filled and kids were talking to one another, pointing at the colorful things around the room. _

_No one sat next to Sora._

_It wasn't that no one liked her; it was that everyone else knew other people already. They had friends. As Sora looked around, she realized she didn't know a single person in here. She sighed, and looked at her shoes._

_The adult who her mother had talked to stood up in front of the children and introduced herself. 'Hello, children. My name is Mrs. Andrews…' she was cut short by the sound of something loud thudding against the door. The class looked at it as the sound came again. _

'_Oooh, it's the boogie man!' a boy with black hair taunted from the back. The thudding seemed to get louder and louder. Finally the teacher went to the door and, reaching out with a slender hand, opened it. _

_A blur of a child burst through the door, running with his shoulder poised oddly. It was obvious that the boy was the one hitting the door repeatedly. His momentum carried him through the now open doorway… right into the desk closest to the door; Sora's. _

_They collided and fell backwards, into a supply rack behind where she had been sitting. The supply rack, filled with finger paint, dumped on top of them. Needless to say, the action resulted into a resounding mess. _

_Sora sat up, dazed. She wasn't hurt, just a bit startled. 'What happened?' she asked to no one in particular. _

_The boy groaned and sat up, massaging his head. The boy that had rammed into her supported large, chocolate brown eyes and equally long, brown hair. Or at least it would have been brown, but now it was mixed with several shades of blue, red, yellow, and green paint. 'He looks funny.' She thought. The paint was on her too, but she didn't mind. This boy intrigued her. _

'_Hehe… sorry about that. Thanks for letting me in, Miss Teacher.' He apologized. _

'_Young man…' she started, and then stopped. 'What's your name?' she asked, trying to remember if she'd seen him before._

'_Tai… Taichi Kamiya' the boy stated. He stood and brushed off his pants, only succeeding in smearing the paint everywhere. _

'_Alright. Why were you doing whatever you were doing to the door?' she asked uncomfortably._

'_I couldn't reach the handle.' _

'_You could have knocked.'_

_The boy- Tai- looked thoughtfully at the ceiling for a moment. Then he blushed. 'Oh, yeah. Guess I could've. But daddy said if you are late you gotta sit in the corner. I didn't wanna sit in the corner…' _

'_Well, ok. I'll excuse you for this once. Just try to be more careful, ok?' she said. _

_Tai nodded, and turned to Sora, offering her a hand. Sora looked at it for a moment, then took it with a smile. "Thank you." She said, starting to brush herself off, but then remembered what had happened when Tai had done it. _

"_Heh, sorry." The brown haired boy blushed deeply. "I didn't mean to run into you. Wanna be friends?" he asked suddenly._

"_Uh…" Sora said, caught off guard. "Sure." She looked at him suspiciously. 'Where… have I seen him before?' She thought. _

_He smiled and righted the desk. "O-kay!" he said enthusiastically. _

_After school, he left with her. "You walking home?" Sora asked him._

"_Yes. It's only a little ways from here."_

"_Me too! Mommy said I knew where it was. I can see it from here." _

"_I should walk you! Where do you live?"_

_Sora was confused. "Walk me? Like a dog? What for?" _

"_Dad says it's polite to walk girls home. I dunno. I aint got no other girlfriends." He looked at her. "Do you have other boyfriends?"_

"_Nu-uh." Sora shook her head._

"_I gots a sister. But she's always sick. I dunno. She's always crying too. Sometimes she wakes up at night and cries. I don't know why though. It's really annoying." _

"_We have a baby in our apartment, too!" Sora said. They started walking down the street. "Sometimes it wakes me up, but I don't mind. I think daddy minds, though. Mommy does too." _

"_That's weird. Where do you live?"_

"_Here we are." Sora motioned to the building in front of her. "Didn't I tell you it wasn't that far away?"_

_Tai just stared up at the gigantic building. Finally he shook his head. "No way! This is where you live?" Tai asked. "I live here too!" _

"_Sora's jaw dropped. "You mean…_you're _the kid who made everything in the janitor's closet fall down the stairs? Why the heck would you do that?" she asked in disbelief. _

"_Er…" _

_They stood there for a moment. "Wanna come in?" Tai finally asked. "You can meet my sister…"_

_(End flashback)_

"You are so freaking clumsy, Tai." Sora laughed. "IT took the janitor three DAYS to clean that thing up!"

"Aw, c'mon. It wasn't that bad. Oh…" he mumbled, looking at the sky. "Look what time it is."

"There's a giant clock engraved in the sky?" she asked curiously, mocking him. Then she saw what he meant. "Good grief. The sun's gonna set soon. Maybe in half an hour…"

Tai looked sad. Then, he perked up with a happy thought. "You wanna watch the sun set from the place we were last time? From the river? It's got to be beautiful there." Tai told her.

"Hm…" she thought it over. "Watching the sunset?" that sounds sort of like… A DATE!" she giggled as Tai blushed.

* * *

The sun set around them. The yellow ball somehow seemed larger when it was setting. It gently touched the horizon. The trees in front of them were scarce, and you could see the colors coming from the sky. They stood in the middle of the river, barefooted. 'Never thought I'd be here again today.' Tai had told her, making her laugh so hard that _she_ had fallen in. fortunately, she also carried a towel. 'Where'd she get that?' Finally they settled down and watched the setting orb in silence.

Tai balled his fists up in concentration as he watched Sora take in sunlight. The waters of the river poured around her slender legs. He just couldn't take his eyes off her. He prepared his mind carefully for what he'd been planning all afternoon. '_Courage, courage, Courage!'_ he thought vigorously to himself. Finally he cleared his throat. "Hey, Sora?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I…" he faltered. "Can I…"

Sora glanced at him, suspicious. "Can you…"

"Can I…" he massaged his neck. "Ask you a question?" Tai said hastily, and then kicked himself mentally. It hadn't been what he was trying to ask.

Sora looked at him, confused. "Of course. Why not?" she replied, facing him.

"I…" Tai's mind was racing. "Uh… have you ever…" Matt would have laughed at him for being so slow, saying he wasn't capable of even relatively quick thoughts. Tai wouldn't have been amused. "Have you ever thought about… you know… 'being' with someone?" he blushed. "I mean, like a boyfriend…"

Now it was Sora's turn to blush. "Uh… well…" she racked her brains for a thought, any thought. "Yeah, doesn't everybody?" she finally choked out, looking at the leader of the digidestined. "I mean, I sometimes wonder if I think about it more than other people because of my crest. The crest of love… but doesn't everyone wonder what a relationship is like?"

Tai looked down into the sparkling waters for a moment, deciding what to say. Finally he looked right into Sora's eyes. "With who?"

Sora reached down into the clear stream, picking up an eroded rock from the bottom. "Well," she started, rubbing her thumb over the smooth rock. "Some people… like… Matt, for example."

'_Son of a bitch.'_ Tai thought, sighing.

"But it was sort of just a lust thing, you know?" she leaned sideways and skipped the rock downstream, where it bounced three times before making a subtle **plunk** into the water. "Cuz, you know, he's really… you know… hot." She blushed and rubbed her neck. "But it's just the same with boys, because they want to go out with Jennifer Lopez."

"I want to go out with Jennifer Lopez?" Tai asked, not understanding the allusion.

Sora laughed at his comment. "No silly, just because she's like a model and everything. Like girls wanting to go out with Brad Pitt."

"Girls want to go out with Brad Pitt?" Tai thought it over. "Oh, I get it. I said that wrong. You mean…" Tai's face adopted the confused look again. "Matt looks like Brad Pitt?"

She shook her head, still smiling broadly. "No, silly." She sighed. "You're hopeless. What I was saying was that I tried to picture me with Matt and liked it because he's hot. It's just a lust thing. It really, really doesn't go deeper than that. I'm not shallow. If I have to choose, it will be because of their personality, not because of how they look. I have to really love them, Tai, and I won't settle for less." She smiled, and then blushed. "Gosh, did I just say that? I must sound really corny."

"No you don't. I agree with you…"

Sora smiled and picked up another rock to skip before Tai asked another question. "So, that's all the people? Matt? And Brad Pitt?" he asked, trying his hardest to be serious.

Sora watched the sun, which was setting over the river. "Well…" she sighed, a longing look in her eyes. "There is… one person…" she looked out of the corner of her eye sorrowfully at Tai without knowing she did it. "But I haven't said anything to… to Him… because I think… maybe he doesn't feel the same way… possibly."

There was silence for a while, Tai watching Sora as she looked around without perceiving anything. His mind moved slowly, and they watched the sun set. He thought about the day he'd had, and about Sora. Who was the guy? The guy she…

The guy she…

He felt lost for words, and worse, he felt as though someone had kicked him into a dumpster. Who was the guy? The lucky guy, the wonderful guy, who had captured Sora's interest? Who was it? He closed his eyes, sighing heavily. Lights from the sun played just beyond his eyelids, forming shapes against the darkness he saw. Bubbles, boxes, animals, and objects flitted around his eyes. It was almost as if he could make out…

Matt… was that Matt? He had to be imagining things. Sometimes he felt envious of his friend. He'd felt it when he saw him singing his heart out on the stage, he'd felt it when he'd seen his grades at school, he'd felt it when… when Sora said she'd thought about them being an item. Matt always got the girls. Beautiful girls, smart girls, tall girls, musically inclined girls, chess nerds, goths, cheerleaders… he'd been with them all. Somehow Matt had made it to the top of the food chain in that area of life. And here Tai was, not able to even say a word to his childhood friend.

Tai moved his eyes around behind his lids, trying to make the image go away. Instead, it just got bigger. The light-Matt leaned forward. In his mind, the guardian of friendship put his arm around Tai's shoulders. "So… you gonna?" the Matt-ghost asked him.

"What?"

"Come on. You're such an idiot, Tai. Make your move!"

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Tai thought in his head, and was sincere about it.

The blonde boy sighed. "Don't you understand?" he pointed sideways, and in his mind Sora stood, still looking at the dying rays of the sun. "Sometimes you're so dense. Hello-o?" he knocked against the shorter boy's brown mass of hair. "'There is one person.'? Hello? Didn't you hear her say that? 'I haven't said anything to Him.' Why do you doubt yourself? Make your move!"

"She doesn't…" Tai started, but was cut off by his friend.

"She _does._ Look at her and tell me she doesn't." he challenged the digidestined of courage. "She does, she does, she does, she does. And if you think that I'm lying, well, that's your fault. But if it isn't you…"

"OF course it's me!" Tai Thought at him, upset. Then he corrected himself when Matt-hologram smirked. "Uh, no. it isn't me."

Matt sighed. "When you want to be honest with yourself, you can talk with me. However, you're gonna have to be honest with yourself before you're honest with anyone else. You know that?" he asked his friend, and poked him. "If you don't know your feelings then how will you know another persons? When you can follow your heart you'll find the way. Look at her." Matt was quiet, and then he waved off and disappeared into the sunlight.

Tai watched as he walked away. 'What?' he thought to himself. 'I must be loosing it. Did that really happen?' he sighed again.

_Look at her._

He slowly opened his eyes and found Sora looking at the sunset still.

_Look at her._

That's what Matt had said. '_What could it hurt?' _Tai decided. He looked at her.

She was beautiful; her red-brown hair flowed gently over her shoulders, onto her tank top. She watched the sun set, the energy catching on her face and giving it an unearthly glow. Her eyes half lowered, she watched as night approached. _Eyes…_ he thought. _Her eyes are so beautiful… so pure… they're waiting for something. What are they waiting for? _

Tai thought to himself. His brain carefully picked apart what Matt had said and what he seemed to believe. Sure, there was something. Sure… she was beautiful in every sense of the word. Sure, she was the girl he wanted to spend his free time with. But what did it mean?

Sora watched and waited. The silence between her and Tai had been there for a while. She was worried she'd said something wrong, and that he wouldn't talk to her, although she knew that wasn't the case. Birds chirped and the forest settled down around them, while the brook became more and more of a gurgle beneath their bodies. The sky turned pink and purple, as the first stars began to show through the atmosphere. They'd been there for the entire day. She didn't feel like going home, but it was necessary. However, she could stay here for a little longer. With Him.

How much did she love the wilderness? Tons. At first, she had thought there was nothing that could surpass it, until today. Until she found she enjoyed it more with somebody.

Tai had been her friend for as long as she could remember. They both would play games in the park together, or in one of their houses. He'd been there with her at camp and when they'd gone to the digiworld. He'd been there when she'd flunked her test in science last year. He'd been there when she'd hurt her knee and her mother wouldn't let her play soccer, causing the team to loose. He'd always been right there by her side when things got tough, or when things were good. A smile and a joke from him always helped to lift her mood when she was down. Just a few minutes ago, she'd nearly told him. She'd nearly said- it. She hoped he'd always be around to help her, or just to be with her. What could she do without him?

She knew that no matter what happened, they'd be able to get through it. And maybe… it would go further… than just friendship.

As if Tai had read her mind, he spoke up. "Hey Sora?" he asked, not for the first time that day. "Do you consider us… friends?"

"Well, duh." She said happily, turning to face him.

"I mean, like what kind of friend?" Sora didn't give him an answer. "A good friend?"

"Of course."

"A best friend?"

"Absolutely…" she wondered where he was going with this.

There was another silence between them. Tai smiled, thinking. Preparing… "Hey Sora?" he blushed. "Can I…" he looked at the water, to his feet. Then he found her face with his eyes again. "Can I…" he noticed Sora's face shining in the water, right beside the moon's reflection. The reflection seemed to be leaning in, listening hard. "Can…" he struggled. "I…"

Sora looked at him, hope in her eyes.

"Can I kiss you?"

Silence.

Sora stepped towards Tai, her face unreadable. All he could tell was that she was thinking. She made several slow, deliberate steps towards him, and then stopped within an arm's length. She gazed into his chocolate eyes with a familiar emotion…

"What do you think?" she asked, taking his hand.

Tai smiled, squeezing it. "I think…"

He leaned forward and made contact… his lips to hers. There was a moment where they drowned themselves in each other, and held onto the one they loved desperately. The scene around them faded away, and there was nothing to the world but each other. Nothing.

They finally pulled apart slowly, breathing in oxygen. Sora fingered lips that tingled with excitement. Her heart was warm inside her. Tai and Sora gazed at each other contentedly. The silence was finally broken by four words that sealed the pact between them.

"I think I can."


	2. Meteor Showers Takari

Chapter Two

**Meteor showers**

A Takari.

Everyone _loves_ Takari! … this is my **_first _**Takari, and it's not the best, but What_EVER!_

_Hey, I'm not dead! _so, even though I've given myself a six month vacation, I will be rejoining the living once again. assuming you guys don't kill me... Um...

Welcome to the second chapter of Couples of the digiworld, Unite! It's actually 4 pages longer than the first. (blushes) Ok, this is where you ask 'Do you have any idea what a one shot IS, girl?'

Just as a reminder, This story has absolutely nothing to do with the previous story, "Can I?" It's not even in the same time period. Or… I think it isn't… But! Even though this is a 'completely different' one shot, the same rules still apply. No FLAMERS! You can review and add your favorite couple! If you have any complaints, Email me! The three rules still readily apply. Now on to the oneshot explanations.

The summary!

Meteor showers.

Kari, Tk, and the other digidestined are on a getaway to the camp where the others first went to the digitalworld. Kari's reminiscing, but the digiworld isn't all that's on her mind.. and Tk has something up his sleeve as well…

(Ok, I suck at summaries...)

_Note: I would put a snappy quip about not owning digimon here, but I also have to say that I don't own XXXholic or any of clamp's stories, and that just totally ruins the fun. _

* * *

**Meteor showers **

"…And then he said, "Got any grapes?""

Kari and Davis both laughed. Tk smirked. _'I knew they'd like it. I just didn't think that Davis would get it. Wow.'_ The blonde boy thought to himself. He went back to skipping rocks into the nearby river, where his skipped four times before splashing loudly. Kari giggled at it and Davis raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, I can SO do better than that!" he boasted, sighing. "Right Veemon?" he asked his little blue digimon, sitting beside him.

The creature blinked at his friend. "No, I wasn't aware that you could, Davis. Can you really? That would be so amazing."

Gatomon, who was sitting higher on the rock formation they were occupying, opened a lazy eye from her nap. "No, Veemon. He's just boasting. Boys do it all the time." She purred, stretching out from her sunbath.

"Nu-uh!" Davis protested. "I can so bounce it five times! Here, watch!" he picked up a random rock and tossed it. The result was a huge splash in the water. Davis blushed and quickly grabbed another rock. "Tha- that doesn't count. It was a bad rock!" he exclaimed, preparing to throw his new one.

Tk rolled his eyes. "Yeah, Davis. A bad rock." He agreed sarcastically. "Why not bad water, too?" he asked.

Davis wound up and tossed the rock, and surprisingly, it bounced one, two, three, four, five times before splashing to the bottom of the water. Turning to the blonde boy with a smirk he stuck his tongue out. "Because water wasn't the problem, Ts." He countered.

"Ooh, now it's on!" Tk smiled. Picking up another rock, he made an attempt himself.

Kari watched in amusement from the sidelines. Sighing, she sat back and took in her surroundings. They all were in the wilderness, far from town, on a weekend getaway. In fact, the others were sure that this was the first place they'd gone to the digiworld. They'd chosen this spot because it had been a year since the group had seen Wizardmon again; the anniversary of becoming digidestined. They'd wanted to do something special, so they had chosen the first place they'd become digidestined. Of course, Davis, Yolei, Cody, and Ken had never seen the place before, and Davis had dragged all the newer ones off into the forest (trying to find where the NATURAL digiport was,) and had promptly gotten lost.

Of course, she herself had never been here, either.

"I was sick," Kari reflected out loud. "That's why I couldn't come."

"What was that, Kari?" Kari's digimon, Gatomon, had pulled up beside her and was now eyeing her curiously. When the digidestined of light saw the white cat, she smiled.

"Oh, Gatomon. I was just thinking about when my brother and friends were here," she told the cat. "Of how I _wasn't_ here?"

The cat nodded. "Yeah. I guess it's a good thing, too, because I wouldn't have been able to protect you. I was with _him._" The digimon sighed, turning back to the competition. "Looks like they're fighting for your hand in marriage or something." She motioned to the two pre-teens. Apparently, Tk and Davis were now tied at six jumps.

Kari blushed slightly at her friend's comment. _'Not like I'd mind if…'_ suddenly she blushed deeper, and she shook her head and dropped the thought. Quickly looking at her watch, Kari smirked. "We're going to be late for lunch." She commented, standing up. "We'd best be going. But first…" the guardian of light's hand clenched around a flat rock. She jumped over to the boys, smiling innocently at both of them. Leaning back, she tossed the rock out. Both Davis and Tk watched as it bounced twelve times before landing in the water.

There was a silence, and then Tk laughed. "I think you win," he told her. "Let's go to lunch. I'm starved."

* * *

The three arrived back at camp to see everyone already seated at the picnic tables. When they showed up, the group was immediately confronted with a scowling Yolei. "You're late! We were going to send a search party for you! Geez, did you die or something?" she asked, making Davis and Tk cringe. Sora and Matt looked over to them and… Tk stared. Had his brother…

_Winked_ at Yolei?

'_No… must've been my imagination…'_ Tk thought hurriedly. Yolei's scowl suddenly turned overly sweet as he grabbed Davis's arm.

"OH, DAVIS!" she exclaimed in a super-peppy voice. "You'll NEVER guess who wants you to SIT BY THEM!" she beamed overenthusiastically.

"Uh…" Davis just stood as still as a rock, waiting for Yolei to scream at him or something. That's what she always did when she was being forced-peppy. Or something worse than screaming…

"OH, it's Mr. Kamiya! He wants to BLATHER ON ABOUT THE GOOD OLD DAYS WITH YOU! Let's go sit by HIM, shall WE!" she put force on the last word 'we'. Davis knew he was in for it.

"What've I done to deserve this?"

Ken crossed his arms and smirked. "Got us lost for eight hours, for one thing…" he informed. His eyes flicked to Tk and Kari quickly before guiltily looking at the ground. "Um… I'll go get the hamburgers now. Why don't you two sit down?"

Suddenly there was a move for the table, and everyone was scurrying to sit down. Davis, as promised, sat by Tai's father and the unmerciful Yolei, Ken's empty place beside her being 'occupied' by Tai, trying to sit in two seats at once. Sora, Matt, Cody, Mimi, Izzy, Joe, and the others found seats until most of the spaces were filled, with the exception of two.

The two were sitting right next to each other. Kari and Tk just looked, confused, at the scene. It had happened so fast that they weren't sure what had taken place.

Tk looked at them, frowning. Suddenly it hit him. "Oh, geez. Can you be any more obvious?" he asked himself, blushing. "I think this is some sort of hint…" he muttered to himself, and Kari, standing behind him, cocked her head.

After a moment, she shrugged and grabbed Tk's hand. "Let's go eat. I'm starved." She informed the boy, tugging him closer to the table. Tk followed her.

When Ken came back to the table, everyone began eating merrily. Tai kept glancing at his sister, and Matt had to kick him more than once to make him quit it. The action confirmed Tk's earlier thought; they'd planned getting them to sit by each other.

Blushing, Tk pondered this. It wasn't as though he minded sitting next to Kari. It's just that he was planning on making his move anyway. It wasn't as though he needed help from his friends. _'Then again,'_ he thought dryly, _'they don't really know I'm going to ask her yet… but still, they're acting so obviously! I'm not an idiot!'_ he thought as he added catsup to his hamburger.

"So Tk, what was it like at camp that year?" Kari asked suddenly.

"Huh?" Tk asked, his arm jumping and spilling catsup all over his hamburger at the sudden question. Tk, blushing, quickly put it down and looked at her. "What?"

"You know…" Kari helped him along. "When you went to camp that year that I couldn't? When you met Patamon?"

A little flying digimon flew over and landed on Tk's white hat. "You talkin' about me?" he asked in an innocent voice.

"Um… yes… sorta…" he told his friend. Turning to Kari, he smiled. "Oh, it's too bad you had to miss it, Kari. We had a lot of weird experiences even BEFORE the digital world thing. Like arts and crafts, for instance… I nearly decapitated Joe's fingers, and we built a birdhouse that had a green roof and multicolored wood…" he smiled and looked over to where Joe was sitting. Unbeknownsed to Tk, Patamon began to munch on his hamburger. Kari giggled.

"So!" Kari's father said loudly, breaking the conversation. Matt, Yolei, Tai, and Sora all raised an eyebrow at the sole adult on the trip. They'd needed some adult supervision, but he was the only one who could make it for that long. The children glared at him, trying to somehow let him know that it wasn't a good time to talk, but a good time to let them bond. Two children in particular.

Like many adults, he seemed oblivious to their glares. "What do you want to do later, for the rest of the day?" he asked. "We should really get the schedule set up…" he told them.

"Oh, can we go swimming?" Kari asked suddenly. "Let's go swimming before it rains."

"Kari, it's not gonna _rain…_" Tai scoffed, looking up. There was hardly a cloud in the sky. He pointed up. "See?" he showed her, his voice slightly worried. What Kari had said sounded like a prediction. And when Kari made predictions…

"But… yeah! Swimming's good." Matt kicked his friend under the table again. "Whatever you think is good, after all." He said. "And later we can tell stories around the campfire. Or something."

Sora nodded with him. "Swimming. Good." She smiled. "I mean, the water's not too cold this time of year, right?" she asked.

"Right!" Yolei pumped a fist into the air ecstatically. "We'll go swimming. Yes we will!" and the others nodded with her. Davis, beside her, mumbled something about Yolei becoming an announcer when she got older while rubbing his ears in pain.

Tk thought about this for a moment. "I'm not sure…" he murmured, but then Kari leaned over and whispered in his ear. There was a brief exchange between them, and Tk smirked broadly. "Ok, that works!" he said, unable to stop grinning. Matt blinked at his brother, and everyone suddenly knew that they were in for a surprise…

* * *

Much later, the digidestined children sat around a campfire in the dark. Tk and Kari sat next to one another while the others glared from the opposite side. Tk leaned back. "What a great night out, isn't it?" he asked in a pleased voice.

"Speak for yourself." Matt countered grumpily. He was shaking out one of his shoes in an attempt to get water out of them. "My shoes'r gonna be soaked for days."

Kari laughed. "Well, it was your fault for bringing them swimming." She told him.

"Well it was your fault for missing me with that water balloon and hitting my shoes! So ha!" Matt said.

Kari smiled as she remembered the events earlier. She and Tk had strung everyone along, and when they were into a full game of Marco polo, they'd left the scene only to come back later with an array of water balloons and water guns. Needless to say, nearly everyone was soaked. She'd managed to avoid their wrath, but Tk'd gotten a cold shower from Ken with a hose down his back. Even so, the boy was smiling broadly.

"We got you good." He told them happily, drawing a line in the sand.

Ken shrugged. "Well, I 'got you good', so we're even, I suppose." He said, squeezing out his dark hair.

"It's a nice night. It sure got dark quickly…" The guardian of hope said, changing the subject. He sat up straighter. "Does anyone know a good story?" he inquired suddenly.

"I've got one!" Izzy said from the other side of the campfire. "It's a horror story. Ok, so there were these two pranksters who decided to start a water fight…"

"Haven't we heard this before?" Joe asked, a slight naïveté showing on his face.

Yolei, however, smirked. "Yes, Joe, I believe we have." She told him, glancing over to Tk and Kari, who blushed.

Tk shrugged. "Ok, ok! We get it. We're gonna pay. Just, any REAL stories?" he asked innocently.

Ken sat back in his seat, thinking. "Once upon a time, there was a small family." he said, sipping from a soda can. A few others took a drink as well. "The mother was washing dishes. The father was watching the game." He continued. "The girl was eating mashed potatoes in the closet. Then someone killed her!" he exclaimed, and Matt, Tai, and Yolei all spit out their drinks in laughter.

"That wasn't a story!" Kari protested, giggling.

Ken smiled. "Well, milady, would you like to take a crack at it?" he asked whimsically.

Kari's smile fell abruptly. "I'm not a very good storyteller." She said quickly.

Tk looked at her skeptically. About half a minute passed before he gave her a gentle nudge. "Ok, I tell one, you tell one. 'k? That'll make it better, won't it?" he smiled. "You're not that bad of a storyteller, Kari. I'll bet you're just _embarrassed." _His voice changed drastically to draw out the 'embarrassed', and Kari hit him with a blanket that was near her. "Arg! Geez! At least answer the question!" he cringed as she buffeted him with the cloth.

Stopping, Kari thought for a moment. "I guess… but it'd better not be like Ken's! Or I'll-!" she raised the blanket again and when Tk flinched, she spread it out and threw it over his head, covering him.

"Ok, Ok! A real story. How do I get out?" he asked from under the blanket. Izzy leaned over and tugged on the sheet and pulled it off. The blonde boy carefully straitened his white hat before starting. "Ok. Ahem." He took a deep breath and started.

"There once was a couple that moved into a hotel suite. It was a discounted suite, almost half the normal price. However, they took it no questions asked."

"Each story of the hotel was the same as the others. Six rooms each level, for three levels. But on the fourth level—where the couple was staying—there were only five rooms. The couple lived there for three months, during which time the hotel went through several managers and occupants. They asked their suspicions to all of them, and all said the same thing. Yes, there DID seem to be a room missing. When you knocked on the wall, there was a hollow sound, and when looking out the window, the building was elongated, as though another room should be there. But their curiosities were dormant, and they never bothered with it."

"Until one night."

"One night, the wife woke the husband up, shaking him. When he looked at her, she asked 'do you hear that?' and fell silent. The man did hear it; a skritch-skritch-scratching. 'Go back to bed, dear, it's probably just a tree.' The man told her. But neither of them could sleep. All night, the skritch-skritch-scratching."

Joe shuddered. "You know, it's funny, I think I'm going to go inside now…" he said, slowly attempting to rise. Matt rolled his eyes and tugged him back into his seat.

"Sit and be quiet. Don't ruin the mood." He told the teen.

Tk shrugged. As Joe sat down, he proceeded. "In the morning, the couple complained to the manager. They talked about it for a short period, and decided to sit it out for a while. However, that night, there it was again. The skritch-skritch-scratching.  
Skritch-scratch.  
Skritch-scratch.  
All night long. And every night that week.  
Skritch-scratch.  
Skritch-scratch.  
Eventually, they complained to the manager again. 'I think it's from the should-be room. That's where it's coming from.' Meaning, of course, the place where the room should have been. After a quick discussion, the manager decided to get a demolition crew together. They—and several of the hotel members—came to watch the demolition. They crashed down the wall and when the dust cleared, sure enough, there was another room that was boarded up there."

"They went in and pried the wooden boards off of the doors and slowly entered the room where they were taken aback by several carvings, carved in the wall and blood-red in color. Over and over, the same message was inscribed.:

'FATHER! PLEASE! LET ME OUT!'"

"The end." Tk stated. Around him there was silence. The first movement came from Joe, who slumped in his stance and tried to tear his hair out.

"God! Now I'm NEVER going to be able to sleep! I should've left. That was one nasty story, Tk!" Joe complained.

Ken took a deep inhale, then exhale. "Yes. One nasty story." He commented.

"I don't remember where I heard it." Tk shrugged. "It isn't mine, though."

Kari beamed, and Tai stared at her. "What're you so happy about?" he asked, his voice jumping slightly. "That was a TERRIBLE story! The good terrible…" he assured Tk, who shrugged again. "But still terrible."

"I think it was a good story." Kari huffed.

"Isn't mine," Tk reminded her again.

"Well, _I'm_ going to have problems getting to sleep tonight." Mimi commented.

"When solving a problem, it always helps to know the answer." Sora told her.

"Provided you know the question." Matt added.

Tk blinked and sighed. "Well, I'm done. Now it's Kari's turn." He stated proudly, and everyone blinked at him. Kari muttered something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like 'oh, fiddlesticks.' "What? Hold up your end of the bargain." Tk ordered her.

Kari sighed and shut her eyes. "But the only one I can think of is really stupid, not scary…" she pleaded.

"You'll do fine." Tai assured her from the other side of the fire.

"Mmmm…" Kari voiced her doubt. Finally she sighed. "Fine, fine. Just don't laugh, ok?" she requested and everyone nodded, showing they understood. "Ok." She took a deep breath in and looked at the sky, stealing a moment more of silence before she started. The stars above them twinkled, reminding Kari of gems. The sight was soothing, and it melted away her nervousness. She let the silence continue for a moment, and then, sighing, she let the words flow out from her mouth.

"They wouldn't come out on a night like this, I suppose." She said sadly, more like she was carrying on a conversation than telling a story. The children leaned in closer, while Mr. Kamaya began snoring slightly in his chair.

"Tonight is clear after all." She went on. "They are never seen when it's clear or… perhaps you just wouldn't know they're here. They only show themselves in the rain."

The wind around them shifted, and Kari looked towards the darkening horizon.

"The wind is their souls, the lightning their way. With the rain they sigh, their spirit carried on the raindrops. If you listen hard…

"…you may even hear them speak…"

At this, Kari stopped abruptly. She closed her eyes, breathing out, as though remembering something. She opened her eyes and looked at the fire.

"They are sorrow, they are wisdom… they existed before and will exist again. They come to those with sorrow, they whisper. It is the greatest gift in the world, to hear them, and to understand. Maybe you will, one day."

"But not tonight, I suppose. Maybe some other night."

* * *

Kari glanced up. The digidestined were waiting, listening. She blushed. "That's it. I'm sorry. It wasn't very scary, I know…" she began.

"Am, um, ah…" Joe blinked. "Speak for yourself. Don't take this the wrong way, but that was scarier than Tk's story." He informed her.

"Yeah." Matt agreed. "I don't think any of us will sleep tonight." He said, but was cut off by a snort from the dozing adult sitting by him. "Well, none of US, anyways."

"That story was really good, Kari. Did you make it up?" Cody asked.

"No… It was told to me." Kari answered him.

Tk smiled. "By who?"

Kari sat back in her seat, looking at the sky. "A friend."

"Should we put Mr. Kamaya to bed?" Mimi asked worriedly. "He's gonna fall backwards and split his skull on the ground, otherwise." She pointed out.

"Ugh." Joe exclaimed, shooting up suddenly. "NO more mental pictures! NO more scary stories! NO more nightmares!" he protested loudly.

"Oh, come on Joe, it wasn't THAT scary." Matt chided. "I know a scarier story by far. An experience, actually." When Sora looked at him oddly, he elaborated. "You ever been shopping with Mimi and offering to pay? Well…" he started.

"Blah blah blah! I'm not list-ening!" Joe covered his ears with his hands and Mimi decked Matt with a rock.

Sora smiled. "Well, anyway, perhaps we'd best get to bed. Looks like some of us are tired anyway. Right Cody?" she asked the small boy across from her, who was caught in mid-yawn. At this he tried (futilely) to clench his mouth shut.

"NO! I'm not tired!" he insisted with another, larger yawn. Davis looked at him, then yawned as well. "Ok, maybe a little." He admitted.

"We have all tomorrow to celebrate." Izzy pointed out. "Unless, of course, we all wake up at three in the afternoon."

"Fine, fine." Tai grumbled, standing. "Ok, gang, back to the cabin."

At this, many rose to their feet with a groan. Kari stood up to follow, but Tk did not. "Tk?" Kari asked uncertainly, looking down at him.

"I think I'll stay here for a while longer." He told her with a smile. "Go on ahead. I won't be long."

Kari hesitated, sensing an undetectable emotion hidden in his words. "You know Tk, I-!" she blinked, then blushed deeply. "No, never mind. Just don't be too long." She commanded. Tk nodded and Kari made her way over to her father, who Matt and Tai were trying to shake awake. Soon nearly everyone had left. Mr. Kamaya even managed to wake up before the boys had attempted to carry him off.

Sora had stayed behind as well. She came over to sit by Tk with careful precision. They sat in silence, watching the fire die before them. Tk was first to speak.

"Why's it so hard?" he asked his older companion, as though they had been talking about this for hours. Sora thought carefully about how she would answer him before she spoke.

"Because you know that when you say it, you will be giving away part of yourself." She said. "And you might not get it back." Tk looked at her, strait into her amber eyes.

"You really think so?" Tk asked her.

"I know so. Just keep the door locked until you're ready to open it, Tk." She advised, sitting back to look at the stars. "Problem is, you're ready. Right?"

Tk was silent, so Sora continued. "And the others think you're ready. Both of you." She informed him vaguely.

"Really?"

"Really. Even Davis, I think." Sora said, making Tk sit up straighter.

"Liar." He said in disbelief.

Sora shrugged. "I think he understands. He sees it. He's just having problems letting go. Everyone does." She explained.

Tk sat up straighter. "Really? It's just…-" he hesitated. "Kari's never really turned him down, and Davis never really stopped asking, so I thought…" Tk stopped again and sighed. "I got her something."

Sora smiled. "Really? How sweet. When're you going to tell her?" she asked brightly.

Tk looked down, blushing. "Um…"

Sora thought about this for a minute before giggling. "You work on that. But let's go to bed and get some sleep." She suggested, standing. "Don't worry about the timeframe. We have forever, so you'll get your chance. And if necessary… we'll get you alone."

Tk was looking at the fire. By the time the thought registered in his tired brain, he sat up to meet empty air. Sora had dashed away before he'd had the chance to retaliate. Feeling cheated and confused, he stood up abruptly and shouted at the empty space.

"HEY!"

* * *

It was the middle of the night, much later in the evening. All the digidestined were asleep in Hickory tree cabin. The females slept on the west side and the boys on the east. A small clock near Mr. Kamiya's bed read 2:01 in feeble blue lights that threatened to burn out any minute.

It was then that Tk realized he was awake. He sat up slowly in mild confusion. He hadn't been startled into conciseness—he'd just woken up, like they did in the mornings. But if a dream hadn't woken him up, what had…?

Tk sensed movement from across the room, and above him, on the top bunk. "I'm sorry, did I wake you?" Tk apologized.

"You must have…" Joe said from above. The other, from across the room, made a questioning sound when the girl in the bunk below her rolled over to look at them, their eyes hidden in the darkness.

"Tk? 'You… say som'n?" Sora asked dully, rolling over. "Mornin' already? No, tisn't…" she droned in that way that sleepy children do in the morning.

Another child sat up. "Time to wake up?" Cody's voice called softly, confused.

"No, don't suppose it is…" Joe said from above.

"Then why're you all awake?" Tai grumbled from the bed adjacent to Tk's.

A boy from the far end of the cabin—Izzy, probably—shifted to a sitting position. "Weird. What woke you guys up?" he asked.

"Dunno, Don't care." Answered Matt from one of the top bunks, above Tai's bed.

"Hm. Well, I'm used to being up at this hour." Said Mimi. She'd been the first girl to awaken. "You know, since I'm living in America? But it's still weird." She concluded.

"Great. Now I'll never get back to sleep." Grumbled Yolei.

On the boy's side of the cabin, Davis blinked and sat up. After a moment, he blinked again. "Wow." He said in a daze. "I'm conscious again."

"Don't give yourself too much credit." Ken grumbled from the bunk below.

"Oh, don't be such a downer, Ken." Tk sighed.

"Hey, you didn't have to wait for Davis to stop jumping on the bed to lie down, much less sleep." He countered grumpily. Then his breath hitched and he sat up so abruptly that he nearly adopted a concussion from the wood above him. "Who else is awake?" he asked, stunned.

"Ooh, ooh, pick me, pick me!" Davis called from above him. Ken punched the soft mattress above him, making the boy yelp and roll over.

"I think the question is, who isn't awake?" Matt commented.

Tk did a quick count in his head. "I think Kari's the only one who hasn't spoken up yet…" he thought aloud.

"I wonder why we all woke up. Well, except for Kari and my dad." Tai hummed in genuine curiosity. "Kari, are you awake?" he called across the room.

There was a second of silence.

"Yes." Kari answered quietly. "I guess it's no surprise that you all woke up." She commented.

Tk looked up at her. She was facing the wall in her bed, and he only saw her back. "You mean you know why we woke up?" he asked in wonder. The other digidestined quieted.

"Of course…" she said, a strange tone in her quiet voice. Tk did a double take, trying to catch it, but failed. Others waited for her to solve the mystery by quieting further.

When she didn't go on, Sora leaned over. "Well…?" she prompted. In the silence, Tk's ears picked up an eerie sound from outside. He blinked at the door. Kari shifted under her covers. There was a moment more of uneasy, drawn out silence.

"It's raining." She informed them quietly. A touch of sadness accompanied her voice, and Tk's ears perked up and caught it this time.

Suddenly Kari slid out from under her covers. Letting her feet dangle from the second bunk, she looked down to her father, who was snoring faintly. She eyed him and then the door. "I think I'm going out." She told the room. Sliding down from her bunk, she fetched her shoes out from under the bed. Tk suddenly felt as though he wasn't going to sleep for a _long_ time.

He sat up. "I think I'll go with you." He said, pulling his shoes from beside his bunk, fumbling with the laces in the dark. At the corner of his eye he saw Joe roll over to glare at him as best a kid without glasses at two in the morning could.

"Are you CRAZY?" he asked. When Tk smiled at him with a well-you-said-it-first smirk his brother had taught him, Joe just hid under his covers. "Crazy idiot." He sulked. "Not me. Not after that tale." he growled, alluding to Kari's ghost story.

Suddenly Tk understood why they'd all woken up. The rain must've made them unconsciously edgy. He beamed at his crush. 'Great story, Kari.' He complemented her in his head. He pulled a dry sweatshirt on over his pajamas. Making sure he had the present in his pocket, he turned to Kari. "Well, I could use the fresh air." He said to no one in particular.

Kari smiled dazedly at her friend and made her way towards the door, and Tk followed. The boy heard something mumbled by his brother and turned before shutting the door quietly, just in time to see Sora hurl a pillow at Matt's bunk. It, of course, missed and hit Tai, who was sitting on the bunk below.

Shutting the screen door and regular door quietly, Tk turned to Kari. "Well, that would've been interesting, but let's get out of here before a full fledged pillow war erupts and wakes are chaperone." He suggested.

"Sure." Kari said, rain beginning to slide down her hair. "But I doubt it. Dad could sleep through an earthquake." She sighed and pointed off to the woods, where they headed.

"Don't doubt it." Tk hummed brightly. "With how loud he snores, he might've triggered a few himself." He commented playfully.

"Tk…" Kari giggled.

* * *

Tk and Kari sat high on the branches of a tree, talking. The branches were protected by several other trees around them, but rain still managed to slip down and hit them at times. Tk sat on his branch with his back to the trunk, staring into the dripping wet leaves, while Kari sat on a separate branch to the right doing the same. Rain fell softly around their fortress as they talked of the digiworld.

"You remember that time when Gatomon cut flying fish up in mid air and then ate it all?" Tk asked her.

"Yeah…" she nodded. "And Palmon decided to show her up…"

"By catching a bigger fish…" Tk continued

"And it landed on top of her?" They ended together, and laughed loudly.

"Big fish, though." Tk smiled. He blinked. "Hey, you know, that reminds me of a few weeks ago when Davis, Ken and I went fishing without you guys…" Kari shifted and craned her neck to look at him, an eyebrow raised.

"Without us?"

"Um… not purposely…" Tk added quickly, taking mental note to warn the other two later. "Uh… anyway…" Tk's voice tapered off as a silent lightning bolt struck far away, lighting up their faces.

"What happened?" Kari asked.

"Hm? Oh…" Tk grinned. "Davis… gets really eccentric on a boat. He… uh…" Tk tapped his fingers together, trying to figure out how to explain what happened. "Well, he was running back and forth, looking over the railings, so fast that it began rocking the boat."

Kari sighed, interpreting his story. "So the boat tipped?" she asked.

"Um… no, the boat was a little big to tip over that easily." Tk informed her.

"Well, then, what happened?" Kari pressed, suddenly curious.

"First, Davis's goggles fell off. They fell into the water. Ken was telling him off for making the boat rock, and reached down into the water to grab them, and wasn't paying attention…" he bit his lip, trying not to laugh. "A fish tried to eat the strap on the goggles and swim away with them and pulled really hard, and Ken sorta fell in."

In the darkness Tk could see Kari smirk as she giggled a little bit. "Why don't I believe you?" she asked playfully.

"Um… because Ken wouldn't normally do something that stupid?" Guessed Tk.

Rain dribbled down on Kari's nose. She rubbed the spot where it had hit, making her look like she was thinking hard. "Well, maybe he would. He always ends up doing something stupid when Davis is around." She offered.

"Come on, Davis isn't that stupid." Tk defended him.

"I think you might just be giving him too much credit…" Kari shrugged.

"I think I might be giving him a lot of credit." Tk muttered.

"What was that? I missed it…" Kari told him.

Sitting up straighter, Tk shook his head. "Oh… nothing. Um… Kari?"

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Um… who told you that ghost story?" he asked cautiously. "I mean, it was really a good one, well, not a good ghost _story,_ just a really good story. Like a legend, sort of." He mused aloud.

A short silence pursued. Kari tugged at a leaf that hung on a branch near her. "A friend." She answered as she had at the campfire.

"Which friend, though?"

Another silence. Kari looked away. "Well, a very _dear_ friend." She said. Hesitating, she added one more sentence, this one with a little more sorrow in her voice. "They're gone now."

At her answer, Tk looked down. Of course he should have seen that coming. _'Great. Did I upset her? I shouldn't have asked.' _He thought regretfully. _'I shouldn't have messed with such a touchy subject. Now I'll never bring myself to ask her…' _

They sat in the tree, Tk staring at his shoes, Kari looking through a gap in the tree to the falling rains. The droplets around them swished and sighed, like static.

'_You may even hear them speak…'_

Tk broke his staring contest with his shoe to look down below him. He was sure he'd heard someone whisper something. Before he turned to Kari to ask if she'd heard it, Tk remembered what she'd said earlier, in her story. About 'they', the wisdom, the sorrow, the ones that only showed themselves in the rain. Closing his eyes, Tk tried to imagine 'them', flying about, following the rain patterns, or the wind. As if to help him along, the wind began to blow gently.

'…_gone, but not forever…' _

Snapping his eyes open he turned to look down the trunk to the ground, once again his eyes meeting empty air. Even so, he was sure he'd heard someone speak. Frowning, he closed his eyes again, this time pulling his legs to his chest. He leaned back and listened.

'_Last place…'  
_'_Won't be…'  
_'…_another thing…'  
_'_Wasn't here…'  
_'_Couldn't remember…'  
_'…_understand?'_

Tk refused to open his eyes. It was like he was hearing something from far away. Snippets of conversation, directed to someone who wasn't listening. Tk wondered if he was imagining things, or just drifting off to sleep. Falling asleep in a tree didn't seem quite so appealing at the moment… Tk reached down and grabbed the trunk as a wind shifted back towards him.

'_What're you doing?'  
_'_You know…'  
_'_It isn't right.'  
_'_She's been waiting for you…'  
_'_You know…' _

Tk cocked his head as the voices became louder.

'_The light is…'  
_'…_happy…'  
_'…_but she is happiest…'  
_'_When her hope is…'  
_'_Strong…' _

Tk frowned. _'Strong?'_ he thought to himself. _'I don't get it…'_

'_Of course you don't…'  
_'_The sands of time…'  
_'_Flow away…'  
_'…_she waits for you…'  
_'_Her own…' _

Tk took a deep breath and wondered if he was starting to loose his mind.

'_Give another…'  
_'_What you want…'  
_'_And they'll return the favor…'  
_'_What is it you want?'_

Tk shrugged, not really caring if he was really going insane. He knew what he wanted, really… to love Kari. But he didn't have the courage to tell her, wasn't sure she'd love him back, or be able to make up her mind between him and Davis… the voices came again.

'_Bound by a star…'  
_'_Your wishes…'  
_'_Are one.'_

His eyes slid open, and Tk looked at Kari. Her arms were folded gently at her middle, and she let the rain in her hair slide down to her shoulders. She blinked in that way that Tk could only describe as magical. He really did love her. And, crazy or not, the voices made a small sense.

"What is it you want?"

Kari's head spun quickly to look at him. She blinked at the blue eyes staring calmly at her. "What?" she asked him, and Tk blinked and blushed deeply, telling Kari that he hadn't meant to ask. Instead of apologizing, Tk looked at her again.

"What is _your_ wish?" he asked.

Kari looked at him, studied his face. There was something strange behind his eyes, but Kari was too busy thinking to try and figure out what it was. "Hm…" she murmured.

Sitting back, Tekaru looked down along his branch, his eyes following the twists and curves it took until it reached the end. "If you could have one thing, anything in the world, what would it be?"

Leaning back, Kari looked again through the leaves and to the sky. "Well, I dunno. What would you choose, Tk?" she asked.

For a moment, Tk hesitated, then he sat up, pushing himself away from the trunk to look around it to Kari. He studied her face, knowing she was still listening as she gazed into space.

"You?"

Kari sat up, startled. She turned to her friend, eyebrows raised. "Really?"

Blushing, Tk looked down. "Um, yeah. If I could." He admitted. He felt stupid now, especially since Kari sounded so surprised. _'Great. I blew it.' _Tk sighed.

Kari sat up to look at him. "You know, Tk, I-!" she started, then paused. "I…" she said, looking at her shoes. Tk glanced up at her, through the rain falling down the brim of his hat. The boy saw her clench her hands and she looked up suddenly.

"You know, Tk, I'd kiss you if you weren't way over there!" she blurted out. With that, her face heated up. She started shaking her head lightly, as if telling herself how stupid that must've sounded. Tk grabbed the trunk and leaned to get a better look at her.

"Yeah, well, I'd come over there if you wanted me to." He said cautiously, and Kari stopped shaking her head at herself. Instead of answering, she just scooted over. "Oh, but first…" Tk paused and reached into his pocket. "Um… I got you this… you know, if you wanted it…"

He pulled his clenched fist out of his pocked and leaned over, gently placing the object into her outstretched hand. It was a necklace, and there was a single pendent on it. She looked closely at the stone hanging on the silver string and noticed one half was diamond and the other half was a yellow stone.

"Um, it's diamond and yellow sapphire." He told her when she looked at it closer.

"Hey!" Kari exclaimed suddenly, noticing small carvings behind the stones, on the silver that supported them. Squinting, she tried to read it, and a flash of lightning lit up the metal. "It's my crest?" she asked.

"Behind the diamond. They didn't have any pink stones for the custom made stuff." He blushed. Kari turned the stone over to the 'yellow sapphire' knowing she'd see his rising sun behind it. "I thought it was good to put it together, because they're both stars…" he explained, his voice quickening in embarrassment. "I mean, I thought so, and it's really what I wanted to get you, if you'd say yes, and you know, it's yours even if you don-.." Kari silenced him with a hand over his mouth.

"I love it. Will you come over here?" she asked, releasing him.

Tk blushed, carefully standing and stepping over to her branch. He sat carefully, one foot gripping the trunk as the other dangled. Kari cautiously was latching the necklace around her neck. She gave it an admiring look before turning to Tk and looked him in the eye. "Tk? I love you, alright?" she told him, before leaning in and kissing him passionately. Time stretched as they lost themselves in each other. Finally they had to break for air. Pulling away, Kari and Tk stared at each other.

Tk shifted, pulling his body so his back was to the trunk. Then Kari, seeing what he was doing, also shifted and leaned back on his chest. Tk put his arms around Kari protectively, and they both looked out at the falling rain, content.

"You know," Kari started. "…I always liked rain. But never at night, because it would block the stars." Tk nodded, showing he understood. "But just look at tonight…" she pointed up through the tree and Tk finally saw what she'd been looking at all this time; there were no clouds.

"Strange." Tk said, his face puzzled. "No clouds? How is it raining?"

"They call it 'fox rain', I think. When it rains with no clouds? It's when you hear them the best." Kari informed him. She sighed. Tk hugged her tighter, noticing that she was talking about her story and wondering if she was sad again.

"Her name was Dawn."

Tk looked down to Kari. "What?"

"Dawn." Kari repeated. "She's the one who told me. When people die, they become rain gods as they wait to be reincarnated." Kari faltered for a moment, then began again. "She said that's why people are sad when it rains… because their loved ones come to talk, and they miss them."

"You miss Dawn." Stated Tk. In his arms, Kari shrugged, then sighed.

"I always miss her. Why'd she leave me?" she asked, closing her eyes. Wind blew and gently shook the branches above them, making rain fall onto her face like tears. The wind sighed past them, and Tk's ears twitched.

'_Silly girl…'  
_'_I never…'  
_'_Left you…'  
_'…_I've always been here.' _

'…_I always will be.'  
_'…'

Kari opened her eyes, tense, as though she'd heard it. Tk blinked. "Was that…?" he mumbled, and Kari looked back at him. At that same time, the wind, which had died, rose up again and plucked Tk's white hat off his head, blowing it straight onto Kari's head. She giggled and pulled the hat's brim up to look at Tk, and the voice found her;

'_So will he.' _

Kari blinked, then smiled at Tk. "You will?" she asked, knowing he'd heard it too. Tk blushed deeply and nodded. "Duh, of course." She smiled. Tk glanced out a hole in the tree branches, across the forest, noticing for the first time how high up they were. He could see a moon in the distance, just the outline, and the stars, too. "It looks like the stars are falling. Like a meteor shower." Kari noticed.

'_By the way…'  
_'…'  
'_Your brothers…'  
_'_Are hiding in the bushes.' _

Kari and Tk stiffened and glared down below them. "Tai!" Kari shouted at the ground.

"Crap! She saw us!"

"She saw you! Not me, dimwit!"

"Matt!" Tk called, smirking and giving Kari a wink.

"…Double crap…" Matt's voice reached them.

"By the way, Matt, you owe me a buck."

"I do not! It's past Midnight! That means that _I _won the bet!"

It took a moment for the comment to register into their brains. When it did, they both scowled. "YOU MADE A **BET?**" They shouted together, and there was suddenly a lot of movement below them, created by two teenagers trying to flee. Kari looked tempted to go after them, so Tk reached out and grabbed her shoulder.

"Wait, Kari."

The girl stopped. "Yeah?" She asked.

"You know what you said about the rain looking like meteor showers?" he said. "Well, you're supposed to make a wish on falling stars." Kari blinked and then beamed at him.

"I already did."

Tk raised an eyebrow. "You did? What'd you wish for?"

Kari wrapped her arms around Tk's neck and gave him a quick kiss. "Guess." She ordered him, lifting herself up and making her way down the tree trunk.

Tk shrugged and followed. "I honestly have no idea." He said, carefully picking his rout through the branches and trying not to slip.

When Kari reached one of the lowest branches before him, she jumped off into the mud. It splattered and covered her shoes. Looking up, she giggled. "You really don't know?" she asked, and Tk shook his head, waiting for her to tell him. She smiled secretively and turned away, locking her hands behind her back. She'd gone about a yard when she looked back over her shoulder at him and winked.

"You."

END

* * *

NOTES

Well, Thank you for all the reviews last chapter! Just look at all of them! I had no Idea that there were so many Taiora fans out there, so thanks! I was surprised by one request, but in spite of myself, I believe I'll follow up on it. The Tai X Venom/myotismon might not show up for a while, though, and be a two-parter. Also, I'd like to thank those of you who reviewed my story.

-

Here's the next chapter's title:

The duck and the rock.  
(A romance story.)

_predicted release date; June 30, 2006_


	3. The Duck and the Rock Mimato

Ch. 3 The Duck and the Rock  
A Mimato

Three stories and counting. Well, I'm planning to keep my promise, don'cha know? Anyways, once again, in short, no flamers, no killing me, no yelling at me for the pairing, read and review, you can submit **your** favorite pairing you'd like me to do. Now that that's out of the way…

To Moonlight: see Author's note at the bottom  
To Falconclaw: Will get to the Jyoumi ASAP  
To Nightshadegirl: If you're willing to wait, I'll get right on your request…  
To ShadowSong: I have absolutely NO idea what I'm gonna do for the Sorato. :Slams head on table: but will do it once I get an idea…  
To everyone else: Thanks for reviewing: (basks in the praise)

Oh, and for the record, since this is a Mimato, please take note that I made Mimi back in Japan, not moved to America, because it's convenient. Hey, I'm an author, you know. I can bend my reality like that. (Laughs evilly). At times, because I was attempting to make the story a bit shorter than the others, it might seem a little rushed, so I'm apologizing ahead of time for that. Sorry. Now…

**The Duck and the Rock **

**The Summary!:** Everyone knows that Yamato and Mimi like each other, but just won't admit it. So Tai gets the bright idea to enter them into couples counseling! Of course, this'll turn into a disaster… wont it?

* * *

_NOTE!: Digimon is not mine! You'd better HOPE I don't own digimon. Else, someday, I'll be forcing all Digilovers to read my fanfictions! (laugs evily, lightning strikes in the background) Thank you, that is all.

* * *

_

Matt quickly strode down the station, past several cars on the subway. He looked with bright eyes back and forth, then down to his ticket. Tk pushed through crowds of people trying to get to him. "Hey, Matt! Come on, where are you going?" he demanded.

"None of your business, little bro." Matt called back to him. He seemed to have spotted his train and was pushing through the mass of people to get to it before they left without him.

Tk scowled and followed. "Can I come? I've got a pass…" he told him, eyeing his ticket. Suddenly his eyes went wide and he smiled. "Oh, Seratoma? Isn't that way on the other side of town?" he inquired.

"Yes, now go away! Why do you think I need to take the dumb subway?"

"I didn't even know the subway went over there…"

"Oh shut up." Matt spat back. Suddenly he made a break for it and headed to the place he was supposed to be, catching the door just as it was beginning to close.

"Oh, good." Matt sighed. "I made it…" he huffed as he sat back, leaning on the window of the car.

"Hi Matt!"

'_Oh great.'_ Matt thought to himself as he turned his head. Sure enough, Tk was standing right behind him. "I jumped in right after you! Pretty sneaky huh?"

Matt narrowed his eyes at his younger brother. "You know what Tai wanted, didn't you? You knew where I was going." He accused. Under his glare, the blonde boy before him just shrugged and smirked. It was obvious the answer was yes. Unsatisfied, Matt glared harder. "Well?"

"Tai told me to tag along and make sure you didn't flee the country or something." Tk answered playfully.

At that, Matt's face went white. "What've I done?" he wondered aloud, turning to see if there was a possible way to get off the train still. The door was closed tight. He looked back at his brother. "What's Tai planning?" He demanded once more.

"Absolutely nothing."

"You wouldn't have agreed to come along if it were nothing."

"I came for the show." Tk hinted mischievously.

Matt just glared at his younger brother. After about a minute, he sighed and pushed his brother's hat down into his face, making the younger blonde squeak in surprise and annoyance. "What've I gotten myself into?" Matt asked the train.

* * *

After a quick ride, (though to Matt it had felt like hours…) the train finally pulled to a stop. Stepping out, Matt looked at the map his friend had drawn for him. He didn't have time to read it, because his brother immediately grabbed his hand and began hauling him out of the train station. Matt, once they were outside, snatched his hand back. "What's with you?" he demanded.

"I know where it is, and I don't want you taking off." He explained.

Matt rolled his eyes. "Well, I DO have a map." He sighed.

"And it's only two blocks from here. Plus, you're terrible at reading maps." Tk joked.

"I've been down here before! For one of my concerts, in fact!" he shot back. "And do I need to remind you who it was that got us lost on our LAST family vacation?"

Tk frowned and crossed his arms. "Ah, that was dad, if I remember correctly…" he said, a playful look in his eyes. Matt slapped his forehead. "Come on, we're going to be late." Tk said.

"Fine, fine…" Matt sighed and they began walking. "So who else is coming?"

Tk gave Matt an innocent look. "Who else?"

"You mentioned something about a 'show'. I'm guessing that you're not the only one who's in on this secret."

Tk thought about it for a moment. "Well," he smiled impishly. "I'm not sure. Why don't we go and check?"

"I'm not going to run off!"

"That's because we've perked your curiosity, my little kitten." Tk laughed, and Matt stiffened. Tk noticed this and continued. "You know, Kitten is a great name for you. Maybe I'll start calling you that." He taunted.

Matt blinked in disbelief and horror. "If you even DARE…" he started, but was cut off by his brother's laughter.

"Haha! Geez, Matt, you should've seen your _face!_" Tk laughed.

Matt rolled his eyes, thinking about how childish his brother could be. "Whatever…" he sighed.

"Matt, lighten up." Tk advised. "It won't be _that _bad."

Matt spotted Tai in the distance and walked over to him. Tk followed close behind, keeping a sharp eye on his brother. "Hey, Tai." Matt called to the boy as he got closer. "I'm here, so what's the big--!"

He stopped short when he found himself staring into the bright, shining eyes of Mimi Tachikawa. Her light brown hair hung down in waves to accent her angular face, but didn't hide it. Lip gloss glowed on lips that frowned in agitation at Tai, and her equally annoyed eyes supported light purple eye shadow. When she met Matt's sea blue eyes, her agitation melted away into momentary confusion and slight enticement, as she did to all cute guys. Matt found himself leaning back on his heels and smirking; something he did to attract girls… his Ishida smile. Both seemed to break out of the spell at the same time, their faces supporting looks of shock and disgust.

"What's SHE doing here?" Matt demanded.

"What's HE doing here?" Mimi gasped at the same time.

Tai's face lit up with a secretive smile. "Oh, you'll see." He hummed mischievously. "Come on, follow me. Now that Matt's here, we can sign up."

Matt and Mimi looked at each other, then to Tai. "Sign up?" they asked at the same time.

Mimi frowned. "Stop saying everything I say." She ordered.

"You first!" Matt shot back.

Mimi pouted, looking off into the distance. She spotted Tk behind him. "So I see your brother's here, too, huh?" she asked.

"Annoying little pest wouldn't leave me alone."

"I know the feeling." Mimi rolled her eyes, pointing over her shoulder to reveal Sora. "She tagged along, saying it was important to get here on time and all that other stuff."

"Tk just said Tai had a surprise and that he came to watch the show." Matt sighed, starting off after Tai. Mimi blinked and raced after him.

"You've got to be joking. It's not like Tai's trying to trick us into anything!" Mimi protested. "He'd never do that. Besides, what's the worst he could do?"

Matt rolled his eyes again. "He can do a lot worse than you can imagine. And I think you're giving him too much credit. He's an evil little imp out to conquer the world with his bad practical jokes and wicked pranks." Matt sighed.

"Hey!" Tai protested. "My practical jokes are not bad!"

"Whatever." Mimi rolled her eyes.

Behind them, Tk giggled and joined up with Sora. "You know, it's funny how alike they are. Don't you think so, Sora?" he asked.

"Yeah. She sounded just like Matt when she did that." Sora agreed. "So where's Kari? She's the one who helped organize this entire thing, right?"

Tk pointed ahead of them, and Sora's eye caught Kari standing at a table. She was leaning over something, probably signing some papers. When the girl spotted her brother and friends, she waved enthusiastically. "Hey guys! What took so long?" she asked.

"Matt was late."

"We took the train." Tk explained.

Tai sighed and shook his head. "Anyway, sis, you got everything lined up?" he asked his sister.

Kari shook her head. "They were out of papers, so they had to go get some more. They're just brining it back now… I guess I'll let you guys handle it."

A woman behind the counter smiled up at Tai. "Welcome to Clemi High School couple's counseling. How may I help you?" she asked politely. Mimi and Matt traded looks again.

"Couple's counseling?" they asked at the same time. Mimi shook her head and cringed, knowing they'd spoken at the same time again. Matt also cringed, but he went on.

"I didn't know you and Sora were having problems…" Matt frowned and looked over to Sora.

The redhead giggled. "We're not. This is for you two."

"'You two'?" Mimi repeated.

"Names please." The woman said suddenly, making them all jump.

Tai leaned over. "Matt Ishida is that guy over there, with the blonde hair and attitude." He let the girl jot that down. "And Mimi Tachikawa is the second prettiest one over there, wearing that gigantic scowl on her face."

Matt finally caught on. "You are so **_dead_** once we're alone, Tai." He warned dangerously as the woman finished the form.

"No, because he'll already be dead before then." Mimi growled.

"I get him first!"

"Yeah right! You…"

A voice interrupted their argument. "M&M? That's so cute!" said the woman behind the counter.

Matt and Mimi looked down on the clipboard the woman was carrying, noticing that she was commenting on their initials. **M**att **and** **M**imi… M&M. Suddenly they exploded. "WE'RE NOT A COUPLE!" Matt and Mimi shouted at once.

The woman put a hand to her cheek and gasped slightly. "Oh, dear. They're already in denial. It's worse than I thought!" she exclaimed, and some of the other digidestined behind the two snickered.

"I said-…!" Mimi and Matt began again.

"Well, the class is about to start, so you might want to get in there." The woman sighed. "James, please show these children to the counseling room." She ordered a man behind them, and turned to the other digidestined. "Is there anyone else who would like to enter the program? We have more than enough spots," she explained.

"No, we're just here to watch and make sure they came." Tai sighed. "They just don't want to be together anymore…"

"We were never together!" the two teens shouted. They turned to glare at one another. "And stop doing that!" they yelled at the same time.

Finally the session started. Most of the digidestined took a seat at the back of the room, fighting back giggles. Both Matt and Mimi sat in desks provided for them, and they stared grouchily at the councilor. If looks could kill, the room would've been a graveyard. The cheery girl at the head of the room ignored their spiteful looks. "Hello! And welcome to the cram session couple's counseling!"

Mimi raised an eyebrow. "Cram session?" she asked.

The woman smiled brightly. "It only lasts for one day, to fit your busy schedules. You may come as often as you like. Or we can set you up with the normal weekly session that-!"

"NO!" Mimi, Matt, and some other people in the room shouted at the same time, horrified. It seemed they weren't the only ones who didn't want to be there.

"Well, let's get started then!" The woman grinned so wide Matt thought her mouth would fall off. The counselor began handing out sheets of paper to everyone. "This is a list of things you should know about your partner. Fill them out, and we'll se how you did. Then we work for an hour to discuss your problems."

"What problems?" Mimi asked softly, bitterness in her voice. Matt agreed with her, on that subject. They weren't going out, and this was just a cruel practical joke… but instead of complaining verbally, he looked at the paper. At the top, above the questions, he began to write.

_Mimi and I have never gone out! Are you people blind? My friends are poking at us, making fun of us because we don't get along a lot. Let us out of here, we don't need this! _

The counselor walking around the room saw what Matt had written on his paper. Instead of letting them out, as Matt had advised, the counselor just patted his back. "It's ok young one. Let all your frustration out. But we need that paper filled!" she said, and Matt smacked himself on his forehead. What was _with _these people? Grudgingly, he began to fill out the form about Mimi. Favorite color? Pink. Favorite food? Don't know. Hobbies? Shopping, painting, singing, cooking…

Soon the blonde was lost in his work. Mimi looked over at him and sighed heavily, starting on the assignment herself. Looking down the list, she realized she knew a lot of them. Could he cook? Yes. Musical instruments? Guitar, harmonica, piano, too many to count. Favorite food? Eggs with hot sauce. Ever traveled? Mimi thought about it… he said he had an uncle or something in France, so she supposed yes.

After what seemed to be only minutes, the counselor called attention. "Please trade papers with your soul mate." She instructed, receiving many loud protests along the lines of 'yeah right! She/he is not my-!" Rolling her eyes, the counselor sighed. "To the person sitting next to you." She instructed, and people became easier to work with. Both Matt and Mimi glanced down the papers, and were surprised how much they knew about each other.

Mimi looked over to Matt, covering her face with the paper to hide her blush. "Well… you sure know a lot about me…" she admitted. "But…" she noticed what he'd put at the top of her paper. "These people are such idiots…" she mumbled, making Yamato laugh. _What a musical sound…_ Mimi thought before she could help herself. She blushed deeper.

Now the counselor stood up again. "Alrighty! See how much you know about each other?" she asked, chipper as ever.

"She said my favorite food is Dung!" a man in the back protested.

"This is so stupid! Why'd I even try to write it out?" another growled.

The woman smiled, groans falling on deaf ears. Apparently, she did this often, and wasn't discouraged by it. "Well, now that we've seen our partners, it's time to see the problem. First up, Cassy and James." A thirty-year old couple from the back glanced at each other. "You will sit up here and debate what you don't like about each other." Both of them hit their heads on the table, and many sat back in their chairs, sighing. Mimi folded her arms, also grumbling. It was going to be a long day.

---

* * *

After the hour long session of debate (which had consisted, for Mimi and Matt, yelling at each other for being lazy, annoying, and brainless…) they had pretended to be each other, and treat their spouse how they felt they were being treated by their partner. (Mimi and Matt had absolutely nothing to say, Matt just stared into space and wrapped a finger around his hair, muttering something about wanting to go shopping, and Mimi impersonated a mime.)

From their seats at the back of the room, the digidestined heard every word. "You _really _think this is a good idea, Tai?" Kari asked shyly.

Her brother pounded a fist to his chest. "Of course it is! Look, they'll be falling for each other any second!"

"Alright, class." The cheer-counselor, (as Matt called her,) stood. "Now, take the paper you had earlier and turn it over. On the back, draw one object you think your partner is like."

Mimi was still steaming about her 'impersonation' done by Matt. Looking at the paper, she decided she'd draw a rock. After all, that's what he was. He deserved it.

Plus, she couldn't draw to save her life.

She quickly drew it, and tried to see what Matt was drawing. She couldn't see. The girl chose that moment to snap them to attention. "Alrighty then! M&M? You're first."

"Stop that! We're not…" Matt and Mimi had spoken at the same time again. They decided to ignore it. Instead, they trucked up to the start of the room.

"What have you drawn?" she asked Mimi.

Mimi held up her paper. "A rock. Because a rock is stupid, and dull, and heavy."

Matt frowned. "Heavy? I'm heavy? What's that supposed to mean?" he asked. Then what she said registered. "Hey!"

"It's true!"

The counselor turned to the boy. "And you? What have you drawn?"

The boy hesitated, then held up his picture. It was a very well drawn picture of a cartoon duck, standing with its beak open. It even had a little speech bubble that said "Quack!"

"A _DUCK?!?!?"_ Mimi shouted, fuming.

"Yup!" Matt beamed.

There was a _very _long silence as Mimi looked at him in disbelief. _"WHY?"_ she yelled in desperation.

Matt seemed caught off guard. "Why?" He said repeated aloud, and then looked at the picture. "Hm. I don't know. You just seem…" he pondered his choice as he spoke. "Duckish."

"Why I oughta…" Mimi started, but then fell silent under her own rage and disbelief. _'A duck. WHY a duck? ANYTHING but a duck would have been better. A horse, a giraffe, a mouse… ok, not a mouse. But anything other than a **duck!** Why in the world did he choose a duck? I'm not a duck! I'm a stunning swan! A glorious goldfinch! A beautiful butterfly! It's more like HE'S the ugly duckling! Why a duck? Why, why, why…'_ Mimi's thoughts went on like this for some time. Finally she was brought back to reality by the counselor in charge, ordering her back to her seat. Many others were called up, most had the same effect Matt and Mimi's drawings had.

After this, they were supposed to tell their spouse one thing they didn't know. Matt was lost for the point of this exercise, and Mimi just refused to do it. It seemed they could agree; it was completely pointless. Instead of talking about this, they talked about how stupid the session was. At the end, both were _almost _smiling.

Next, they had to talk about one thing that interested them. Each talk was supervised by a separate counselor. Mimi looked at Matt, confused. Well, the last talk had gone well… so…

Hesitantly, she asked. "Um… so… what do you want to talk about?"

That had prompted a long talk about music. Matt and Mimi were both musically talented, and were interested by it. Matt had just on the brink of asking Mimi if she'd like to attend a concert of Trapt with him before he'd realized it would seem like a date. Mimi almost accepted, too. Flinching, they looked away. Neither noticed the grin on the counselor's face.

In the back, the children noticed too. "Weird. Did you see that?" Kari asked Tk.

Tk blinked in disbelief. "I…I'm not sure…"

"Now that we seem to be doing better," the counselor hopped up to the front of the room again. "We'll try the drawing activity once more. Everyone, grab a piece of paper." She ordered.

Mimi remembered what Matt had compared her to earlier. Quickly, she stole a glance over to him, to find the boy was biting his lip. Carefully, he touched the pencil to the paper, drawing carefully.

Mimi herself sighed, not knowing what (or how,) to draw. She remembered they'd just talked about music, so maybe there was a simple instrument she could draw or something. She racked her brains, but all she could think of were hard things to draw. Sighing, she carefully drew a music note on the paper. Simple, but perfect.

Mimi wanted to hit her head on the desk. "Why can't I _draw?…" _she asked mournfully.

Mimi finished, not a moment too soon. The counselor chose that moment to startle everyone with her perky voice. "Time's up! Matt, Mimi, since you were first last time…" she smiled. Rolling their eyes, the two got up and trudged to the center of the room. "Mimi, you first."

Mimi revealed her drawing. "I didn't know what to draw, so I put a music note, because he likes music." She mumbled. It had sounded more pathetic than she'd meant to.

The counselor blinked at her. "O…kay! So, Matt, what've you drawn?"

Yamato blushed and showed the picture to the class. The woman leaned in to give the paper a better look. "Wow. Is that one of those digimon people?" she asked, making Matt's face go completely red.

Mimi leaned in to see what he'd drawn as well. Sure enough, it WAS a digimon. _Her _digimon, in fact. Lilymon had never been drawn by a professional artist before… she'd be flattered. When the counselor was done admiring the picture, she sent them back to their seats. Carefully, Mimi leaned over and nudged matt. "Hey, Matt! Can I have that picture later?" she asked. The boy, shrugged and nodded, still red. "Thanks. Palmon'll love it!" she giggled. She sat back in her chair and watched as others presented their pictures.

At last they moved on. "All right, class. Now we-…" the counselor stopped. An older man was leaning down, whispering something to her. The girl raised her eyebrow at the man and sighed. "All right, apparently, we've misplaced the next exercise. Therefore, we'll move on to the last thing. Everyone has five minutes to go out and find something that reminds them of their partner."

"What is with you and reminding people of their spouse?" someone from the back shouted, slapping his forehead.

The woman raised an eyebrow. "Don't dis the system! Especially when it works." She grinned. The man in the back had fallen silent. "Now, since many of you may be tempted to run off, we'll provide someone who will come and get you if you're gone for more than five minutes. All right, get out there and find what you want!" she cried loudly, making everyone cover their ears.

"And then we can go _home…" _Matt added, groaning.

* * *

Mimi sat nervously in her chair. It had been eight minutes since they'd been sent out, and there was no sign of Matt. She herself did not know what to do for the exercise they were supposed to be doing; nothing reminded her of Matt! Nevertheless, she came back right after five minutes. It seemed that Mr. Goldenlocks had ditched her.

The girl tried to listen to what was being said by the pair that was up. One person had found a shop and bought a box of heart candies, because that's what his wife always ate when she was upset. Mimi fidgeted, unable to keep her mind on them. What if something happened to Matt? Something bad? What if he'd left her to fend for herself, in this stupid couple's counseling thing? What if…

"Mimi Tachikawa, you and Matt are the only ones who have not presented." The counselor's voice cut through her thoughts. "Do you know where Matt is?" she asked.

"No, but…"

"I found him!" Tk's voice came from the door. The boy shoved his brother to the front of the room. Matt himself was looking bewildered and slightly embarrassed. "He was downtown."

"Great, let's get done with this and we can go home." Mimi stood up and brushed off her skirt. When she was close enough to Matt, she leaned in. "What took you so long?" she whispered.

"I couldn't find anything." He muttered back.

"Then what's that?" she demanded softly, pointing to something wrapped in white cloth that he was holding in his hands. Matt looked down to it and his eyes went wide, as though he was surprised, he was holding it.

"Well," the counselor brought them up to the room. "You gave us quite a scare, Mr. Ishida. What have you found?"

Yamato blushed deeply. "Well, I… ah…" the bundle in his arms began to move, and Mimi glanced at it. What was in there? The cloth shifted a bit more, and Matt tried to calm the movement down…

But instead, a small kitten wearing a pink bow popped its head up from the cloth. "Meow!" the feline yowled in Matt's face.

From the back, Sora and Kari couldn't help but aww at the sight. Matt blushed deeply, trying to hide the kitten back into the cloth. The cat would have none of it. It jumped up into Matt's hair, nestling itself among the golden locks.

"A cat…" the boy cringed, knowing there was no way out of it. "Well, I was just walking and there were these… kittens… in a box on the street there." The blue-eyed boy wrung his hands nervously. "I was watching them and lost track of time. This one was toying around with this heart shaped necklace like one I gave to—" he paused, but only for a second. "To a girl once, and I picked it up, I guess…" he scratched the kitten behind the ears affectionately. "I like kittens…" he said absently, so softly that only Mimi could hear.

"And you, Ms. Tachikawa, what have you brought?" the counselor asked, almost ruining the moment.

Mimi blinked. For some reason, she'd been reminded of something… something important…

The girl pulled out an object from her pocket. It was a golden heart necklace. "I got this a long time ago, when I was with my friends." She explained. Matt's eyes went wide at the sight of it. "Sunrise, I believe. I guess the gold reminds me of his hair." Mimi pointed to the boy.

The counselor shrugged, realizing it was more important than that. "Well, alright then. Now, since you all paid for a one-day service, I won't be seeing you again. If you wish to join us for a longer period of time…" the counselor kept talking, but Mimi and Matt (and most other people in the room) were out the door by then.

Outside, people stretched. The older people headed for their cars, or the train station. Matt wasn't walking as fast as the others because of the kitten snuggled in his hair.

"Are you going to keep it?" Mimi asked. She noticed it was wearing a pink bow.

"She. And of course I am. It would be silly to think otherwise." He laughed, looking up. "That is, unless, you know how to get the little furball outta my hair." He grinned. His mood changed, however, when he caught Mimi's eye. "You kept it? I thought you threw it away." He motioned to the necklace in her hand.

The girl blushed. "Well, I always have it with me. You didn't forget your promise, did you?" she asked.

The boy grinned. "You mean the marriage thing?" he asked.

* * *

_(Flashback)_

_Matt and Mimi stood at the top of a hill in the digiworld. The other Digidestined were still asleep, as it was only five in the morning. Matt usually woke up early, though, and Mimi hadn't been able to sleep. At all. _

"_What's wrong, Meems?" Matt asked carefully. _

_Mimi shook her head. "Couldn't sleep." She mumbled. _

_Matt looked at her curiously. "Why couldn't you sleep? You've never had that problem before. In fact… don't you usually sleep so deeply that we can't get you up in the morning?" he joked. When she didn't answer, he sighed. "Ok, seriously, what's wrong?" _

"_Nothing!" The girl insisted. _

"_I don't buy it." Matt countered flatly. _

_Mimi, seeing how stubborn Matt was being, sighed and gave up. "Fine, but you have to swear that you will not tell the others, OK?" she asked. She looked at him, and he nodded in agreement. "You're hot and I've got a major crush on you." _

_This comment made Matt stare at her. "Uh…" _

"_Ok, there. I said it. Just… don't be wierded out, ok? It's probably just a crush." Mimi said quickly before locking her hands behind her back. "Unless, that is, if you feel the same way?" _

_Matt blushed deeply. "Well, Yeah. But I didn't want to tell you because you might get all weird and hanging all over me or you might just ignore me." He admitted. "You think I'm hot?" _

"_Duh." _

"_And that's why you like me." Matt summarized. _

_Mimi leaned back on her heels. "Well, that's sorta how it started out. But then I remembered Mom said never to go out with someone unless you like their character. So I looked for yours." She said. "I thought, for a few days there, that you were really, really dull. Like a… like a rock." She thought aloud. _

"_A rock." _

"_Uh huh. Anyways, then I heard you talking to Gabumon one night about things, and I changed my mind, I guess. That's when I got the crush." _

"_Things? What were Gabumon and I talking about?" Matt asked, worried. _

_Pausing for a minute, thought. "Oh, lots of things. About home, about your brother and friends…" Mimi blushed. "About me…" she took a deep breath. "You seemed sincere, thoughtful… and a little full of yourself sometimes." _

"_Well, you're sort of annoying at times, but that didn't stop me from having a crush." Matt grumbled. _

"_Right. So I guess I got a crush on you. Your good points outweigh your bad ones… and let me tell you, you've got a lot of bad points. You're stubborn, you've got a temper, you fight too much with Tai…" _

_Matt quickly changed the subject. "How far back did you get the crush, again?" _

"…_Two and a half months, I think." _

"_You've had a two-and-a-half-month Crush on me?" Matt asked, bewildered. _

"_What? You said YOU had a crush on ME. Don't you?" Mimi asked, embarrassed. "When'd yours start?" she asked. _

"_About… three… months…" He stammered. _

_At this, Mimi brightened. "Oh good. It's not just me, then. But mom says that if you have a crush really long, even if you're getting to know the person more and more, that means you might be soul mates, and be together forever." Mimi grinned. "She and dad are soooo weird, sometimes. But other times, what they say almost makes sense, because right now I really do want to be together forever." _

"_So you're thinking this is the real deal, not just some crush?" _

"_Maybe… If that isn't too corny." Mimi looked down. _

_Matt thought to himself for a moment. "Hey, I've got a way to tell for sure!" he exclaimed. Carefully, he dug into his pocket. He brought out what looked like a heart necklace, hung on a gold chain. Looking at the object, Matt hesitated, but then held it out to her. "Here. Wear this." _

_Mimi cooed at the heart, fixing it around her neck. When she was done admiring it, she turned back to Matt. "What is it for?" she asked. "And… why are you carrying it with you?"_

"_I always carry it with me. See, it's a family thing. Tk has one, too. Mom says that if you give this to the girl you like, you'll get married some day." _

"_Married?" Mimi was so surprised, she flipped over and fell on her behind. _

"_If you don't want it…" Matt leaned over and offered her a hand, which she took. "Then just give it back. Or throw it away. It's no use to me, it's just a superstition. That's what dad says." He shrugged. "If you keep it, consider it as a… a proposal, I guess." _

_Mimi bit her lip, poking the new jewelry around her neck. "Pro…posal?" she repeated, thinking. _

_Matt interrupted her thoughts. "By the way, why can't we tell the others?" he asked. _

"_Because, they'll be all "Matt and Mimi sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G!". And even if they know we like each other…" she fingered the heart necklace. "They might… I don't know… try to push us together or something. They might even make us take couples counseling, with how much we always fight!" _

"_No they wouldn't." Matt laughed. _

"_You're right. Not if they value their life." Mimi agreed. "But they'd try _something_ like that. You know it." she asserted. She looked over the digital world, seeing movement down in the valley. _

"_I think the others are up. We should go back." Matt sighed. Suddenly he held out his hand. _

_Mimi looked at it. "What?" _

"_Whether the others know it or not, you and I are now an item. I guess. And when we get out of here, back home, I'll take you on a date, if you want." He explained. "If you want a date, shake on it. I don't forget my promises." _

_Mimi grinned broadly, shaking his hand. "You will take me on a date." Matt dropped her hand, and Mimi held it out again. "Now you promise ME something." _

"_Yes?" _

"_If I wear this necklace till I'm 20, you marry me." She said, making _Matt _so surprised that he fell on his behind, just as Mimi had earlier. _

_He pushed himself up from the ground, and then blinked at her. Then, taking her hand, he grinned. "Absolutely." _

_(End Flashback)_

"How could I forget that, my fiancée?" he asked sarcastically. When Mimi glared at him, he sighed. "You know I still like you. I wasn't lying when I told you that in the Digital world."

Mimi sighed. "But we can't let the others know, can we? Otherwise, they'll… well, they'll set us up for something like Couple's Counseling!" she sighed.

Matt sighed. "Yes, our little secret." Almost as an afterthought, he grinned. "I still think you're annoying." He murmured.

Mimi hit him on the arm. "And you're still full of yourself!" she spat back. Blinking, she grinned evilly. "And Tai's still dead for forcing us into that _stupid _place." She reminded Matt. Somewhere behind them, Matt could've sworn he heard a scared yelp that sounded just like his goggle-wearing friend. When he looked behind him, though, there was no one there.

"Ah, let him live for another twenty four hours. I want ice cream." The boy laughed.

Mimi sighed, following. "Me too. But I need to know…" she jogged up in front of him. "What are you going to name her?" she asked, petting the cat that was sleeping on her friend's head.

Matt grinned. "Well, seeing as how she wears a pink bow and was playing with a heart necklace, I think she reminds me of you." He stated carefully. "So I guess I'll name her…"

"Mimi?"

"No, I think I'll name her Duck." He laughed, and they both raced off into the distance.

* * *

NOTES

Hah! Completely done. That was my attempt at Mimato.

… P it was so baaaad…

I hope I characterized Mimi alright… she's not a character I focused on a lot when I watched the show. And yes, for those of you who are confused, Matt gave Mimi the heart necklace… and they had been going out. They just hid it from the others… for whatever reason. O.o… (It's complicated…) Please Review, and tell me what you think! I'm a sucker for critisizm. Oh, and Moonlight? I've got your story planned out, but it'll be a while before it's finished… give me a month or so, and I'll have your Takimi story done.

Assorted Chocolates

A Valentine's Day Gift

Predicted release date: _will be up in Feb. 14._


	4. Assorted Chocolates Koura

_Koura: _

_Assorted Chocolates  
__A Valentines Day Gift_

_The Summary!: Valentine's day is here, and Izzy's fretting over whether to give Sora--his crush--a Valentine. Little does he know that Sora may have the exact same problem... _

_Yeah, yeah, a Koura. It took me long enough to get up the chapter... and it's relatively short, compared to my other ones... but hey, I wrote it, so it's up to you whether you read it or not. At least I got the release date on the dot... _

_Enjoy!_

_

* * *

Note: There is no way a mere child as myself could ever own such a lucrative--I mean... such an intellectual show. _

* * *

Assorted Chocolates 

"I don't know, Mimi," Izzy said into the phone. "I mean, yeah, I've got a crush on Sora, but it's not like she'll ever feel the same way. I'm a braniac, not a rock star… That's Matt's thing."

Izzy sat back in his chair as Mimi's voice came over the phone. "So? Maybe she _likes _the braniac kind." She said, making him roll his eyes. After all, if Sora liked braniac people, he was sure he would've known by now.

"Even if she did," Izzy grumbled. "I'd be at a loss of what to tell her—or when! This whole 'love' thing has me confused. And that's really _saying _something, Mimi."

"Alright, I'll give you that… you may be the smartest kid in your half the world, but when it comes to girls, you know little to nothing." She said. She hadn't said it in a _mean _way, just in a matter-of-fact way. She'd actually been having these conversations with Izzy for a few weeks now… Sometimes he called her over in America, (where she now lived,) just to say Hi, but more often than not, the conversation centered around the Digidestined's Guardian of Love—Sora… who Izzy had a crush on.

A _major _crush.

"Yeah, well, I don't know whether she likes me or not… or if she's even considered me as a possible boyfriend!" Izzy slumped down into his chair. "I'm better off admiring her from afar. If I actually _said_ anything to her, she'd probably laugh at me… Or I'd screw up." He summarized.

Mimi sighed, also sitting back in her own chair. "Hm… I've got it!"

"You've got _what_, Mimi?" Izzy asked.

"Don't say anything to her."

Izzy blinked. "Gee, that's helpful." He said dryly.

"No, no—what I mean is, don't _say _anything to her… you don't have to!" she said, excited. "February 14 is coming up soon, right? Just get her chocolate, and the whole message will send itself! You don't have to do any talking at all!" she exclaimed.

Izzy blinked at the phone for a moment, letting a long, drawn out silence ensue. Finally he shook his head. "Um, earth to Mimi? On Valentines Day, the GIRLS give the GUYS chocolate, not the other way around." He said slowly.

The kid could practically hear Mimi blush over the phone. "Um… oh… I completely forgot… Japan's Valentines Day is completely different than America's."

This made Izzy frown. "What?"

"Well, over _here, _usually it's the other way around… the guys give the girls chocolate. I guess I wasn't thinking…"

"Really?" Izzy asked, surprised. "The guys give the girls chocolate? How odd. What do they do for white day (1), then?"

"Um… we don't have it." she explained. There was another silence, then Mimi cut in again. "Get her chocolate anyways. Tell her it was my idea, and it'll make up for the mix-up. Right? Plus, you gotta admit, it's a practical solution to your… um… problem."

"But that would seem _weird_, Mimi! …I'd be the only guy giving a girl chocolate in the entire country!" Izzy exclaimed, blushing deeply. "And I have no idea how to make chocolate." He added.

"Just buy some. You don't need to know how to make it, and she'll understand. After all, you may be a braniac, but when it comes to cooking…" Mimi trailed off, letting the sentence finish itself. Both remembered trying to make a cake for Izzy's mom only a month after all the digital stuff had settled down; it had been a complete and total failure.

"Yeah, But I… That stove had to have been rigged or something!" Izzy protested. "And another thing… it's… it's… uh…" Izzy stopped short. "Do you really have that much confidence that giving her chocolate will work?" he asked.

"It's one way to let her know your feelings, right? You make the first move, then she can think about it." She answered confidently. "Now go buy her chocolate!"

Izzy bit his lip, hesitating. "If you're really sure…"

"Positive."

* * *

Izzy rolled over in his bed, unable to sleep. The first thing that caught his eye was the box of chocolates he'd bought earlier that day. It sat atop his books for school, right next to his bed. Izzy reached down a hand and fingered the outline of the box.

Against his better judgment, he'd done as Mimi'd instructed and bought a box of chocolate from the nearby store. The clerk had given him strange looks when he'd bought it, but Izzy had been able to get out of the store before anyone he knew saw him buying chocolate. As the redhead remembered the look on the cashier's face when he'd rung up the chocolate, a blush arose on his cheeks and he hid his head beneath his pillow.

At least he'd bought good chocolate. Rich dark assorted chocolates. Some had filling and others were plain, so there was a greater chance that Sora'd find at least ONE type she liked.

"It's a lot like her personality, isn't it?" he asked the empty room. He fingered the box and turned it over, reading the label. "The rich chocolate is like her love, encompassing everything. Rich and deep and always giving pleasure to those near her… never bland."

He picked up the box for a better look. "The filling is like her actions and abilities… the cherry filling would be like her intelligence, sharp and abundant. The orange would be like her sporty side, always citrus-y and full of vigor. The pure chocolate is like the acts of kindness she blesses everyone with…" he went on, rambling. By the time he'd gotten to the 'coconut filling' and compared it to her wonderful sense of humor, Izzy figured that he was too tired, and _definitely_ too love-obsessed to even go on.

He set the box back onto his bag, shaking his head. Normally he wasn't so brainless, but Sora just… made him that way. It was almost as though logic didn't exist when she was around. Instead of pondering her further, (he'd just dream about her anyways,) he pulled up the covers around his chin to get some sleep. As his eyes got heavy, the last thought passed through his mind;

'_Tomorrow I'll tell her.'_

-

* * *

- 

'_I'll tell her if I ever find her, at least…' _

Izzy sighed, defeated. He currently was crossing the river on the stone bridge, wondering what to do. There was no school today, so he had no idea where to find Sora. He tried her house, but she had already left, and now he was visiting all the 'usual' places. The indoor tennis courts, that new café down by the bookstore, at the Kamiya's… nothing.

Exhausted, he slumped against the bridge's stone ledge and sighed. Hoisting himself up, he sat on the broad ledge and gazed down into the river, deep in thought. He could, in theory, wait outside her house until she came home, but by then she would probably have presented chocolate to some lucky bachelor Probably Matt, or Tai, even.

Of course, Yamato or Tai would be Sora's first choice. Tai was a soccer stud—probably going to get a scholarship to Tokyo University with his abilities. Matt had good grades that could get him into Tokyo U, but the thing that made him 'attractive' to most girls was the fact that he was a rock star.

And here HE was, a braniac whose only achievements included a national spelling bee title from the first grade and international commendation for his computer skills. Some would consider it to be very prestigious, but it didn't get girls. It didn't get Sora.

Why would Sora want to go out with _him? _

Another sigh escaped his throat as he pulled his bag closer. He opened it, pulling out the store-bought chocolates. "Is it even worth it?" he asked his reflection.

Izzy bit his lip, debating. He _really_ wanted to give the chocolate to her. To say 'I love you with all my heart, be my girlfriend' or maybe something a tad less cheesy…

Would she turn him down, though? Or would she accept it?

He hoped so.

-

* * *

- 

When Sora got home at sunset, she sighed. It had not been a good day for her. She'd been searching all day, but it seemed that the person who she'd been looking for had disappeared off the face of the earth. Maybe he was hiding from her…

The thought only made her mood worse. With a grumble, she dropped her backpack on the ground and pulled her keys from her pocket. She slid the metal into the lock, but something odd caught her eye. Curious, she bent down to pick it up.

It was a heart-shaped box. She turned it over in her hands, noticing a note taped to the back. It read;

_Dear Sora,  
__I know I'm not a rockstar  
__Nor am I a soccer star,  
__Probably not any kind of star that I'm aware of…  
__But my love for you is strong  
__Your arms are where I belong  
__So won't you be my valentine, sweet angel from above?_

Her eyes strayed down to the name and she broke out into a grin. "So you've been hiding at my house while I've been scouring the town for you, Izzy?" she grinned at the box. "Now I guess I owe you on white day."

And she smiled and grasped her backpack, knowing that inside, beneath her homework, her schedules, her house keys, and all the different paraphernalia she kept in her bag was a box of delicately made homemade chocolates… With Izzy's name taped on the cover.

* * *

A/N: Well, that's it. Next oneshot's going to be the request; if Moonlight's still reading this... next chap is "She Lives in America" and it's a Takimi. Just letting you know. But it won't come out until mid-may, at least... :dies from homework overload: anyways, hope you enjoyed! 

Crit me, baby!


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